Mexico; the wonderland of the South

EXICO

HE WONDERLAND
OF THE SOUTH

W.E.CARSON

HIC EST ClBER MEUS,
TESTES EST DEUS;

r« SI Q U I 5 ME Q U E R I T >xj
\ HIC NOMEN ERIT. //

Compliments of

HON. W. L. MACKENZIE KING. M.P.

MEXICO
THE WONDERLAND OK THE SOUTH

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO - DALLAS
ATLANTA • SAN FRANCISCO

MACMILLAN & CO., LIMITED

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCUTTA
MELBOURNE

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, LTD.

TORONTO

A TEHUANTEPEC BEAUTY,
Wearing her elaborate costume, starched head-dress, and necklace of gold

MEXICO

THE WONDERLAND OF
THE SOUTH

BY
W. E. CARSON

EDITION IflTH NEW CHAPTERS

Veto t«fc
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

1914

Jt

COPYRIGHT, 1909, 1914,
BY THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.

Set up and electrotyped. Published October, 1909. Reprinted
April, 1910.
Revised edition, with new matter, February, May, 1914.

Nortoootj

J. S. Gushing Co. — Berwick & Smith Co.
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A.

PREFACE

RECENT events in Mexico, which have resulted in wide-
spread revolution, have nerved to draw the attention of the
whole world to that distressful country. Incidentally,
there has Iron created an extraordinary demand for reliable
information concerning Mexico and the Mexicans. This
fact, as well as the generous rereption accorded this l»ok
since it appeared, has led the publishers to Issue the present
edition, which, by means of careful revision and certain addi-
tions, has been brought fully up to date.

It should be added that the material emlxxlied in the
various chapters was not derive* 1 from a merely su|>erficial
acquaintance with Mexico. Ixit was gathered during a series
of visits to the count ry and a fairly long residence there.
Shortly before the retirement of President Dial the author,
as a newspa|>cr correspondent, made the tour which he
describes ; and in relating his experiences he was enabled
to make use of certain observations he had made and facts
that he had collected on previous visits. In addition to
this he had carefully studied the bost works on Mexico,
statistical, historical and descriptive.

It is unfortunate that of the numerous books on Mexico,
published in recent years, the majority have dealt with the
darker side of Mexican life. The reading public has thus
been made unduly familiar with such subjects as the horrors
of the peonage system, the corruption of the government
and the atrocities of revolutionist*. An impression has also
been widely given that "greasers," cow-punchers and ban-

vi PREFACE

dits are typical of Mexican life as a whole. That such an
impression is far from accurate, however, is clear to any-
one who has visited the larger Mexican cities or is familiar
with conditions in the quiet rural districts of the central and
southern states.

Mexico, it is true, is barbarous in spots.. A It is equally
true that in the capital and elsewhere one finds abundant
evidences of culture and the refinements of highly civilized
life. Therefore, to judge the country fairly, not only should
its undeveloped material be examined, but also the best that
it has been able to produce. Mexico has its dark side, but
it should be given due credit for the progress that has been
made in the face of many difficulties.

In the following pages the author has given a concise
account of his wanderings in Mexico, a description of the
Mexican capital and other interesting cities, of the great
haciendas, of the gold and silver mines, of some quaint
health resorts and of his experiences in mountain climbing,
tarpon fishing and ranching. Ample space has been
devoted to the life of the people, the political aspects of the
country and its industrial development. Some idea has
also been given of the strange contrasts which characterize
Mexico to-day.

Under the long rule of President Diaz, Mexico witnessed a
general progress which might easily have occupied cen-
turies. But this very rapidity of evolution has worked
against a completeness of development and has left frag-
ments of the ancient order that give to the country, in
patches, the fascinating interest of olden days. Railways,
telegraphs and telephones, automobiles, electric light and
traction have come, and the social life of the educated
classes has been largely modernized; and yet the Indian
with his burro, the cargador with his burden and the old-
fashioned village priest still remain. Thus it is that in

PREFACE Mi

Mexico the old and the new are everywhere to be seen Ale

hy -i.lr

It is thin strange mixture of the ancient and modern that
has produced such cjueer phases of life as exist in Mexico
to-day. The highest type of civilization and the mart
primitive barbarism are oftentimes to lie found in close
proximity. And it is on this account that Mexico, in |>oint
of human interest, wirpasjvs any other country of Latin-
America. With a wonderful past, peopled by an ancient
race with strange customs and traditions, it is also a land
of magnificent scenery, of superb climates and amazing
natural resources.

While dealing with these subjects, the author has exerted
even' effort to give the reader an insight into Mexican life
in all it.** gradations. lie has tried, in short, to give an
accurate description of Mexico as he saw this wonderful
country in journeying from place to place — the everyday
life of the people, the sights and scenes that he witnessed
and the various incident* that marked his travel.

One of the new features of the present edition is a careful
summary of events in Mexico from the accession of Presi-
dent I)iai in IHTfi to the administration of President Huerta
in 1914, together with an account of the revolutionary
episodes of the last few years. I hi ring a recent vi-it to
the Republic the author was also able to gain an interesting
insight into its present condition, and an idea of the general
political outlook, the result of which has been embodied in a
carefully written supplementary chapter.

Such, in brief, is a summary of this book, the aim of which
is to give a pen-picture, froth, accurate and inclusive, of
Mexico to-day.

CONTKNTS

I. TMB TBoric* m A •• NOKTIIKK" 1

II. FlIOM OBUABA TO TIIK ( AIMTAI . . . .19

III. Mi \i • Ctrr I»Y NIUIIT 44

IV. Mrxi. •• PA*T AM. 1'unrM <T7

V. TIIK Sioiirft or TMK CAMTAI M

VI. ('lit MOIK.4 AXD MlBAri.K* Ill

VII. TMK l.irr. or tin Pcnri.r U i

VIII. TIIK M»XICA» WOHA* i:,7

IX. TIIK KOMMON IKVAAIOK 170

X- TIIK WHIT* MA*'* Itt KI» M-nr AK» K . . . 1M

XI. F«OM DlA/ TO llfRMTA I'M

XII. TIIK M«i iii*rKY or <i«»vrnM«rsT .... '.MO

XIII. A MKXICAK PAKADIJIK -ju

XIV. Tn». CITY or TMK AKUKL* £15

XV. A MRXICAM CAMLABAD 240

XVI. TMK VAILKY or OAXACA 2M

XVII. LuxuBiof* I.i> i AT A «...i t. MINK .... */72

XVIII. CMftl»TMA« AT I>M RXYW J-7

XIX. PRBninTORto MBXICO . . . . ' . . . 100

XX I.irB m AM OLD MKZICAM Town . . . .914

XXI. IM THB CBATKB or PorocATmrBn. .... 198

XXII. OUADALAJABA TMB WoMDBBrUL . . . . 839

XXIII. -TMB SILVBB CITY" S&5

Is

X CONTENTS

•

CHAPTER PAG«

XXIV. THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN . . . .370

XXV. THE ISTHMUS OF TEHDANTEPEC .... 378

XXVI. TARPON FISHING AT TAMPICO . . . .394

XXVII. IN NORTHERN MEXICO 404

XXVIII. MEXICAN PROBLEMS OP TO-DAY .... 428

INDEX , 439

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

A TEHCAHTEMCC BEAUTY

MAT tiiowtxu AtrrnoB's ROUTE 1

MEXICO'S CatEr SEAroBT 5

A STBEET ix VEBA CBOI 12

THE BLIXD HEGGAB 10

A TVWCAL PEOX 23

MEXICAX RIIHXO COTTCME 23

A VIEW tx OBIXABA 30

WoXDBBri'l. KXGIXEEBIXO 33

WATCIIIXU TNE TBAIW 30

MEXICO'S NATIONAL DBIXE 42

Ax AOUADOBB 42

CALLE PII KELOJ, MEXICO CITY 48

REMIXISCEXT or THE PAST 53

CALL* CINCO DE MAYO. MEXICO CITY 00

ANCIENT PICTUBE RECOBD 71

HEBXAXDO COBTE* 74

THE KurEBOB MAXIMILIAN ...*••• 88

CATBBDBAL AND PLAIA, MEXICO CITY 87

THE MEXICAX NATIONAL PALACE 00

PYBAMID or THE MOON 00

El

xii LIST Of ILLUSTRATIONS

FACING PAG1

THE AZTEC CALENDAR STONE 94

ANCIENT AZTEC POTTERY AND STATUE or THE GOD OF WAR 99

THE PASEO DE LA REFORMA 110

STONE FIGURES OF THE GOD OF FIRE AND THE SAD INDIAN 117

CHURCH AT TEPOZOTLAN 120

CHURCH OF GUADALUPE 124

TYPICAL MEXICAN WOMEN OF THE UPPER CLASS . . . 130

PUBLIC SCHOOL CHILDREN 130

"PLAYING THE BEAR" 162

THE ANCIENT RACE — TYPES OF MEXICAN INDIANS . . 186

GENERAL DIAZ 197

SOME NOTABLE MEXICANS 204

TYPICAL REVOLUTIONISTS 211

THE RURALES 214

THE AWKWARD SQUAD 214

A "BlT" OF CUERNAVACA 222

A VIEW FROM CUERNAVACA 227

AZTEC ARCHITECTURE 230

IN OLD PUEBLA 238

THE PYRAMID OF CHOLULA 238

A VIEW OF PUEBLA 246

THE PLAZA, OAXACA 257

TORTILLA MAKING 272

MEXICAN REBECCAS 272

A VALLEY IN THE SIERRAS 282

WITHIN THE RUINS OF MITLA 282

RUINS OF MITLA 312

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS xiu

r*raM r*««

ASCENT or POPOCATEPETL — VIEW FROM HALFWAY HOUSE . 880

Tut JOURNEY'* END — On SUMMIT or POPOCATEPETL . • MO

CATHEI.KAI AND MAIN PLAXA, GUADALAJARA . . . 843

An OLD STREET, GUADALAJARA S46

QUAINT OLD GUANAJUATO 166

A CHAMBER or HORRORS M2

SILVER MINING 306

MEXICO'* ART TREASURE — THE TITIAN AT TBJNTZUNTIAJI 873

THE MEXICAN TROPICS 880

THE ROCKY ROAD 396

MEXICO: THE WONDERLAND OF
THE SOUTH

CHAPTER I

THE TROPIC* IN A "NORTHER"

A LONG line of flat, sandy coast with numerous sand-
bare stretching seaward* over which the surf wart breaking.
The land, covered with scrubby bushes and here and there
a melancholy group of cocoanut palm*, lay forlorn and
desolate under the dark sky. Farther off along the coast
I could distinguish a long, gray, straggling city, an islet
crowned by the time-worn turret* of a white fort, and two
great stone jetties* branching out from the shore. We
were running through a stormy sea in the teeth of a strong
head-wind; and this was my first giim|*<e of Mexico from
the deck of a Ward liner in the early hours of a November
morning.

From New York to Havana and thence into the Gulf of
Mexico our voyage had been through seas that were beau-
tifully blue, under a cloudless sky; and although it was
winter, the air was as balmy as in June. But on the
Mwenfth day there came a sudden change. The tropical
sky and warmth disappeared ; dark clouds veiled the sun,
a strong wind began to blow, the leaden- tinged sea was
covered with white-caps. Then came a wireless message
from Vera Cms, warning us that a "norther" was playing
havoc all along the coast. These "northers" are the
which at frequent intervals during the winter swoop
» 1

2 MEXICO

down from the ice-bound regions of the north and harry
the Gulf coast shipping.

The breakers were dashing and the spray was flying
about the narrow harbor entrance, but inside was smooth
water. In the old days there was no harbor at Vera Cruz
and the only protection from the sea was a low coral reef.
Then vessels in the roadstead were obliged to lie with
steam up, ready to put out to sea the moment a "norther"
began to blow ; collisions were frequent. Within the last
few years a fine harbor has been built, at great cost, by
S. Pearson & Sons, the English engineers, consisting of a
system of great stone jetties which extend round the reef
and completely break the force of the sea. Now vessels
can lie safely alongside in any weather and discharge
directly on to the wharves.

Bleak and mournful under the dark November sky,
Vera Cruz had yet at closer quarters an extremely pic-
turesque, old-world aspect. For about two miles along
the shore stretched the city of low, flat-roofed houses;
from among them rose the domes and towers of several
churches. Conspicuous in the foreground was the new
custom-house, a handsome structure of white stone, and
not far off were the gray towers of the old cathedral. On
a clear day, the distant snow-tipped peak of Orizaba forms
a magnificent background for the port, but the famous
volcano, when we arrived, was shrouded from view.

Lying at the wharves were three American and two
English steamers, a big German liner, and three small
revenue cruisers, painted light gray, and flying the Mexi-
can ensign of red, white and green. A large and cosmo-
politan gang of stevedores — Spaniards, Mexicans, Italians,
negroes, Chinese, Japanese — were busily loading one of
the American ships with bags of coffee and great bunches
of green bananas; the German liner was taking in from

THE TROPICS IN A M ItORTIIKR " 8

two lighten at once a cargo of bright rod ciyewood logs.
For Vera Cnu is a busy port, despite the "northers";
the bulk of Mexican trade passes in and out over it* wharves.
In years to come the northern port of Tanipico is likely to
rob the old town of much of its trade ; but at the present
time Vera Crui handles over a million tons of imports
annually, brought mostly from the United Sutra and Ger-
many, and including machinery, textiles, and such things
as Chicago beef and bacon and tinned meat.* ; for Mexico,
notwithstanding its wonderful noil and climates, is not yet
a self-sustaining country. The export* are chiefly sugar,
coffee, tobacco, rubber, dyewoods and various tropical
fruits.

Our liner went easily to her berth hard by the little
island of San Juan de I'lloa. with it* <|uaint Iwtllerncnts of
gleaming white; beneath the wall* a group of tall | minis
covered with their masse* of fan-shaped leaves of vivid
green gave a touch of the tropics to the scene. I'pon this
island Oortfe landed on April 21, 1519, and here he con-
tinued his wonderful career of conquest by burning his
ships and marching away to the Altec capital. The first
fort, of which not a vestige remains, was built by the
S| laniard*. In the reign of Queen Eliiabcth. it was
seised by that bluff English hero, Sir John Hawkins, when
he entered the harbor to obtain provisions and repair his
storm-beaten vessels. Treacherously attacked by a large
<jpft«S«h squadron which aRMffSarrivcul, he was driven
from the port with the low of most of his ships, many
men, and much treasure. The ancient stronghold, en-
larged and rebuilt at various times, remained in Spanish
for over two centuries. In later times it was
lively captured and occupied by the Americans in
1847 and by the French in 1864. It is now used as a
prison. Verm Cnu was originally named La Villa Rica

4 MEXICO

de la Santa Vera Cruz (the Rich City of the Holy True
Cross) from the reputed richness of the land in gold and
the fact that Cortes landed on Good Friday. Since the
Conquest it has always been Mexico's most important
seaport.

We were not allowed to land before the Mexican health
officers had come aboard and examined us. Havana is
regarded by the Mexican authorities as a hotbed of yellow
fever, and the Havana authorities regard Vera Cruz in the
same light. During the winter months there is no yellow
fever in either city, but that makes no difference in their
fear of each other. Our steamer had touched at Havana,
and the doctors accordingly subjected us to a rigorous ex-
amination, putting thermometers in our mouths to take
our temperatures and otherwise overhauling us. As each
thermometer ran the gantlet of several mouths, and was
only slightly washed with antiseptic between each, this
ordeal was not a pleasant one. Some of us began to fear
that we might have yellow fever without knowing it, and
should be hurried off to some dismal quarantine hospital
to end our days. It was a real relief to find that we had
not.

In the meantime a mob of gesticulating porters or
cargadores had gathered on the wharf, clamoring loudly
for patronage. They were yellow-skinned fellows with
the coal-black, beady, furtive eyes of the Indian half-
breed. Most of them simply wore a shirt and trousers of
dirty white cotton, scanty and ragged ; a few had a loose
jacket of the same material ; all looked half frozen in the
" norther." Some had wrapped a tattered piece of blanket
about their shoulders to keep out the cold. Some were
barefooted, others wore sandals of a rough-and-ready kind.

These cargadores, or burden-bearers, are familiar objects
throughout Mexico. They are trained from childhood to

TBM TROPICS IN A "NORTHER" 5

carry heavy weights, and might also be said to inherit
their wonderful capacity. The Aitecs had no beasts of
burden, and the baggage of their armies was always car-
ried by cargadorea. The Spaniards, having few horses,
continued this custom. Though most cargadores are not
particularly sturdy in appearance, they can lift and carry
enormous loads. It is not uncommon to see a couple of
them carrying a piano through the streets. A trained
cargador will carry a load of one hundred and fifty pounds
over rough mountain trail* and cover more miles in a day
than a mule. The load is held in place by either a fore-
head strap or a breast strap or a shoulder strap, or by two
or more of these combined. As the cargador moves along
with his heavy load, there is a good deal of straining of
the straps, reminding one of the line in Omar Khayyam :
"Now for the porter's shoulder-knot a-crcaking." In
the towns the cargadores are licensed, and carry braes
platie on their breasts showing their numbers.

I stepped ashore, and instantly two cargadores seised
my luggage. One took my bags ; the other, quite a slight
man, lifted my heavy trunk on his shoulders and trotted
off to the custom-house. A f t<-r the examination he trotted
off with it to the railway station about a mile away.

Leaving the water front, I walked out into the city
of Vrra Crui, where I found that outside the principal
thoroughfares the streets were almost deserted. This
seemed strange for a city of thirty thousand inhabitants
until I remembered the "norther," likewise the midday
siesta which is still preserved as a sacred custom even in
this busy seaport. A queer, dingy old place it looked,
for the most part, the business places being ancient and
grimy ; the sign-boards with their S|ianish wording were
faded and battered. The buildings and houses are nearly
all low, two-storied structures of solid stone or stucco,

6 MEXICO

seldom white, but generally tinted pink, yellow or blue;
on the second stories are bright green wooden or iron
balconies where the dark-eyed senoritas love to sit at their
needlework and watch the passers-by. Oil paint is seldom
used here or anywhere else in Mexico for the exteriors of
buildings, and the water-color or kalsomine quickly fades.
After one rainy season it becomes soft and streaked, so
that even a new building soon looks quite antiquated.

The narrow streets were at that time (this has been
altered since) paved with rough, unevenly laid cobble-
stones, and had open gutters in the centre. Small street-
cars, painted bright yellow and drawn by two sturdy mules,
ran through most streets, but there were no ordinary car-
riages of any kind to be seen. I was told that the bad
paving made it almost impossible to use them. On Sun-
days I heard it was quite the custom for the townsfolk,
even of the better class, to ride up and down the streets
in the cars, enjoying the air and gossiping with friends
who passed in other cars — the Vera Cruzan substitute
for the Champs Elysees or Rotten Row.

In the centre of the town is a small plaza, planted with
palms and various tropical shrubs, where the local military
band plays several nights a week, as is the custom in all
Mexican towns. On one side of the plaza is the cathedral,
built in 1734, though it looks much older. Not far away
is the church of San Francisco, founded in 1568; its tower
is now used as a lighthouse. Adjoining it is a convent
which has been converted into a public library. The other
sides of the plaza are occupied by the portales or arcades
found in every Mexican town. Here are various shops
and cafe's and one or two hotels. On the sidewalk outside
the cafe's groups of men sit all day and almost all night
at small iron tables, forever drinking refrescos, which are
cool Mexican drinks, or; alas, the fiery American cocktail.

TBR TBOPIC8 7JT A ** NORTH KB " 7

In this quarter of the town are the theatres, the exchange,
and two or three public building*.

Having to change some money, I went into a hotel where
I was accommodated with Mexican coin in return for a small
discount. To my joy I found that for every American
dollar I received two Mexican. These Mexican dollars,
called pesos, are not only larger than the American dollar,
but contain a greater |*»rcentage of silver, yet their value —
such are the freaks of monetary systems — is only fifty
cents. However, that doesn't matter much in Mexico,
because the purchasing power of the money is on a Mexican
basis too. Thus, railway travel, hotels and most of the
necessaries of life an* somewhat lens than in the United
States. On the other hand, as Mexico, like this country,
goes in severely for protection, most imported articles are
extremely dear.

Notwithstanding the delight of having one's supply of
money automatically doubled, then* is a dark side to this
bright picture. On this occasion, part of my Mexican
small change consisUxl of twenty-five silver dollars, each
weighing nearly an ounce. I carefully distribute these
throughout my various pockets, and thus burdened, felt
like an ancient Spanish galleon loaded with pieces of eight.
Notes and gold are in circulation, but they are not always
easy to get; the notes, too, when you get them, are often
in a filthy condition. Silver, however, seems to be pre-
ferred by the Mexicans, and they frequently carry their
available funds in a handbag strapped over the shoulder.

The design of the Mexican dollar is on the obverse the
cap of liberty, bearing the word "Libcrtad," Burroun<l<ti
by the rays of the sun; on the reverse is the tnului«
eagle perched on the cactus, with a serpent in his
Although the engraving is very crude, it is ini|
improve it, because the Chinese, who use the

8 MEXICO

dollars very largely in their own country, as being the
purest silver coin in existence, would not accept them if
the design were changed. At the same time, the roughness
of the design makes counterfeiting very easy and its de-
tection difficult, with the consequence that there is much
bad money about the country. Other silver coins are the
half and quarter dollars, and the ten and five centavo
pieces, the centavo being worth half a cent.

A negro who was lounging conveniently outside the
hotel heard me asking my way, and promptly stepped up
with a polite bow and a cheery smile. "Let me show you
round the city, boss," he suggested. He was a dapper
colored gentleman of middle age, and had that half -famil-
iar, half -deferential manner which distinguishes the average
negro who has been employed in any serving capacity.
Like most negroes, he was full of good humor, and he spoke
Spanish like a native. I accepted his offer, and we walked
on. As we strolled through the streets, my companion
exchanged smiles and greetings with sundry Mexican ac-
quaintances, one or two of them good-looking girls of the
humbler class. He bowed with exaggerated politeness
and lifted his hat with the words, "Que tal ? seiior" (How
goes it, sir), or "Buenas dias, seriorita" (Good day, miss).

"You seem to be very well known here," I remarked.

"Yes, sir/' replied the negro, with an air of pride, "I
guess I do know quite a few people in Vera Cruz."

"How do you like the Mexicans?" I asked.

"Well, boss," was the reply, "it's dis yer way: dere's
some mighty fine folks in dis town, but Lordy ! most of
de poor people are trifling and no account. But,' ' he added,
in a patronizing tone, "what else can you expect of dese
yer half-breeds ? No, indeed, sir, you won't find no such
low-down, no-account people in any part of the States,
'deed you won't, tank de Lord.

THE TROPICS Ilf A " JfORTUMH " 9

41 Dcy 's mean, too, dese yer Mexicans/' he went on ;
44dey count deir centavos like dey was gold. Give me
a genleman from New York or Boston. You never see
'em counting of deir dollars."

This gentle and diplomatic hint was thrown in, I pre-
sume, as our walk was about to end. As we were parting
company, the colored gentleman, with a grin which would
have made the fortune of any negro comedian, remarked :
" I's proud o* meeting a genleman from New York or Boston,
boas; dey jest naturally know how to travel. Dey ain't
like dese yer M ex lean*. Dey's all right."

It is a curious fact that, although Mexico adjoins the
United States, few negroes ever crow* the border ; and most
of these are found in V'era Crui and other towns along the
coast. With the exception of a few employed by railway
companies as porters for Pullman earn, there are almost
none in the interior. The "nigger" in Mexico, too, is far
from being the subservient creature that he generally is
in this country. The Mexican*, perhaps naturally, do
not feel the color horror so general among Americans. A
negro is granted equality in a way which a**toni*heH an
American; and he is something of a curiosity, too, ex-
citing more or less wonder in Mexico wherever he goes.
In small towns the native* *tarc at him and children fol-
low him. Mexicans call negroes "ncgritos," and think
them very amusing. A woman of Indian blood would not
lose caste by marrying one.

The reason why negroes are so scarce in Mexico is that
they cannot compete with the Indian population as laborers,
and the wages are so small that no American negro could
live on them. Some years ago an American company
brought down two thousand negroes to work on a Mexican
plantation, paid them good wages and fed them well. At
first they were very industrious, and did more work than

10 MEXICO

the peons. Then they became lazy, many of them took
Indian wives, loafed about and refused to work; so they
were discharged, and soon became destitute. The Mexican
government compelled the company to take them back
to the United States.

After my stroll round the city, I sat down outside a cafe*
near the plaza to take, at my leisure, a first survey of real
Mexican life. The scene was full of vivid contrasts.
Across the street was quite a smart-looking costumier's
shop, in the windows of which were displayed some dainty
gowns and hats . This was the centre of attraction for many
well-dressed women and girls, who stopped to feast their
eyes on the fashions. Only a few doors away was a bat-
tered, tumble-down drinking den, cavernous in its gloomi-
ness, reeking of stale liquor, where scantily dressed, bare-
footed natives perpetually passed in and out ; at the door
stood a lumbering old wagon, drawn by two oxen, loaded
with bananas — such a cart as might have come over
from Spain with Cortes. Then there was civilization
again in the shape of a bank, quite a substantial stone
building, where much business was apparently being done.
Now and again, a Mexican from the country would ride
by on a spirited horse, his feet deep in the national pocket
stirrup, on his head the steeple-crowned sombrero, or a
native milk vendor, sitting almost on the tail of his mule,
its back loaded with clattering milk tins; jolting baggage
trucks passed, driven by Indians, cracking their whips
and calling down perpetual encouragement to their mules
of "Mula, mula!" Then at noon, from the neighboring
police barracks, trotted out a patrol of rurales or mounted
police in their neat gray, silver-braided, tight-fitting uni-
form and huge sombrero, Winchesters slung on their backs,
revolvers and swords at their sides.

But perhaps the most curious sight in Vera Cruz is

THE TROPICS Uf A * ffORTUMB " 11

the city's unpaid scavengers. Hopping about the streets,
outside the smart costumier's, by the cathedral, alongside
the cafes — everywhere, in fact — were group* of sopilotct*
or turkey bustard*, equalling in site the largest American
species. These ungainly birds act as public scavengers,
and are protected by law ; the fine for killing one of them
IB five dollars. Hundreds of them can be seen lurched on
the roof tops or the church towers, waddling about the
streets, fighting over all sorts of offal, or hurrying afu*r
the street-cleaners to claim the choicest bits of garbage.
What with the sopilotc** and their human assistants, the
street1* of the town are kept quite decently clean.

Until recent times, Vera Cms was a town of Iwul drainage
and evil smells, and yellow fever raged there |N»rpetually.
During the summer months each yenr the mortality wits
often frightful. Whole ship*' crews were sometimes swept
away by this scourge, and an unarrlimntuuil traveller
visiting the city literally took his life in his hands. A
few years ago the city authorities set vigorously to work
to stamp out the pestilence. Much of the old city was
demolished, and a new sewerage system was constructed.
the sewage being taken out to sea, and contamination of
the harbor thus avoided. A new wat**r supply was in-
stalled, and a relentless war was waged against mosquitoes.
This thoroughgoing hygienic cam|»aign ended in a victory
for the city's health authorities; and now there is practi-
cally no yellow fever in the winter months, and even in
the summer the cases are few and far between. There
wm only 21 deaths from the disease in 1908, accord-
ing to government reports. Unacclimatiied travellers
who observe the usual precautions are generally safe now-
adays at all seasons.

Strangely enough, now that Vera Cms has lost its evil
reputation as a plague-stricken city, it has actually achieved

12 MEXICO

a new character as a health resort. During the winter
months large numbers of people flock thither from Mexico
City in search of sunshine and warmth. Situated as it
is in the tropical region of Mexico, Vera Cruz, even when
a " norther" is blowing, rarely has a temperature below
sixty degrees Fahrenheit, the normal winter heat being
between seventy and eighty. The " norther" which was
blowing through the town when we arrived was not actually
a cold wind ; it was simply bracing. But the thin-blooded
natives are so accustomed to tropical heat that a sudden
drop in the temperature to sixty degrees causes general
suffering, and keeps every Mexican indoors as much as
possible while the wind is blowing.

The greater part of the thirty thousand inhabitants of
Vera Cruz are true Mexicans, that is to say, people of mixed
Indian and Spanish blood. There is a fairly large foreign
element in the city, consisting mainly of business men,
American, English, German, Spanish and French. In the
surrounding country there are a good many foreign planters
cultivating sugar-cane, coffee, bananas, etc. In Vera
Cruz, as in all parts of Mexico, Spanish is the only European
language known to the mass of the people, although owing
to the increasing number of Americans in the country a
knowledge of English is gradually becoming more general
among Mexican business men.

Vera Cruz with the "norther" blowing was a place to
hurry away from, so in the afternoon I took the train to
Orizaba. This mountain town, situated 4026 feet above
sea-level, amidst beautiful scenery, is a favorite health
resort for the Mexicans. The gradient is so steep for the
greater part of the way that the train takes about five
hours to cover the eighty miles from Vera Cruz.

On Mexican railways the trains are arranged in the usual
American style, and American rolling stock is generally

THK TROPICS IJf A "JTOBTBZB" 1 !

used. The Mexican Railway, however — the line between
Vera Cms, Orisaba and Mexico City — uses some big
Fairlie engines made in Glasgow. The trains are invariably
divided into first, second, and third-class cars, the first-
class car corresponding to what is usually called in this
country "a day coach." Only the night trains have Pull-
man cars attached to them.

Compared with an American train, the Mexican Rail-
way's day train seemed rather shabby; the fi rat -class car
was old and worn, and furnished with black leather scale.1
It was, however, no worae than the ordinary first-class
cars in which I afterward* travelled on other Mexican
railways. The companies, I wan told, could not afford
to run Pullman cara on their day train* at present, as
there are not enough foreign iMu*cngcr* to make it pay,
and Mexican traveller* are usually too parsimonious to
pay any additional fare for the sake of more comfort.

About twenty passenger* from the steamer had taken
tickets for Orizaha. so that the single firat -class car wan
fairly well filled when the train started.

The Mexican Railway, which i* owned by an English
company, has the distinction of being the first railway
ever built in Mexico; it was begun in 1H58 and finished
in 1873. The track run* from the lowland* of Vera Cruz
up through the mountain*, and i* a man-el of engineering.
Some of the gradients are stupendous ; at one point the
line reaches an altitude of over ten thousand feet ; in some
places it runs along the mountain side on terraces cut out
of the solid rock. Owing to the magnitude of the work
and the enormous difficulties of laying the track, the con-

1 A change for the bettor DM dner born made. The Mexican
Railway Co. now run* aome comfortable, reclining chair can for the
accommodation of firvKlaai pMMMm, and for which DO extra fare

Li rh:»r«,-<i.

14 MEXICO

struction cost over $35,000,000, or about $125,000 a mile.
The Mexican Railway is not only regarded as one of the
best railroads in the world, but as a scenic line it is sur-
v passed by none, the views for most part of the way being
magnificent.

The country for miles round Vera Cruz is a vast sandy
waste interspersed with swamps, the haunt of herons,
wild ducks, alligators and snakes. This, at intervals, is
broken by dense woods filled with aromatic shrubs and
gorgeous wild flowers peculiar to the tropics. Leaving
this unwholesome region, the line runs through a succession
of banana and cocoanut plantations, miles of coffee trees,
with their dark, glossy leaves and bright red berries, forests
of palms and palmettos, groves of oranges and lemons,
fields of pineapples and green sugar-cane. Novel as all
this was, I must confess that, without the glare of sunshine
and the heat which we have a right to expect from the
tropics, the tropical vegetation lost most of its charm.

We passed a number of small stations, mostly crude
structures of wood, usually set in the midst of a grove of
palms or cocoanut trees. Outside these a few yellow-
skinned, barefooted natives would be seen, with their
sarapes or blankets drawn tightly about them, looking
half frozen in their thin cotton clothing and straw som-
breros. Some Americans who appeared to live in the
district boarded the train, and their talk was all about
banana- and coffee-growing. But with the cool weather
and the dark sky it seemed impossible to realize that one
was actually in the tropics.

The first important station at which we stopped was
Cordoba, about sixty miles from Vera Cruz. This town
has an altitude of 2713 feet and a population of ten thou-
sand, and is just on the border of the sub-tropical zone.
It is noted for its fruit and flowers as well as for its fine

TEE TROPICS Uf A "XORTUMR* 15

coffee, of which there are numerous plantation* in the
neighborhood. It is quite an old town, having been
founded in 1018 a* a place of refuge from the malarial
fevers of the coast.

Numerous beggar*, picturesque in their tattered garb,
clamored round the train for centavos. Two or three of
them carried queer-looking old harps and mandolins, and
entertained us with a verse of the S|>anish song, La Paloma,
which they sang in rather high-pitched naval tones. One
blind man, with a most saintly expression, stood by our
car, sombrero in hand, beseeching us to be generous for
God's sake — "por el amor de Dios." Another blind
beggar, led by his much- wrinkled, sad-visaged Indian wife,
gave an excellent imitation of various sounds peculiar to
animal life, such as the quacking of a duck, the clucking
of a hen, the grunting of a pig, and the whistling of a mock-
ing-bird.

Standing a little removed from this motley swarm of
mendicants, I noticed a melancholy looking Mexican
wearing a rather battered brown felt sombrero, his limbs
encased in skin-tight trousers of thin gray cloth, adorned
with numerous patches. Over his shoulders was a bright
red blanket. He was strumming away at an old-fash-
ioned mandolin and singing some mournful Spanish song.
Catching sight of me, he stopped playing, and lifted his
sombrero. I went out on the car platform and handed
him five cents. To my astonishment, he |*-lit«-ly declined
my humble offering. "Sefior," said he. in choice Spanish,
with some emotion, " you must pardon me for being unable
to accept your gift, but I am a ten-cent beggar, sen* or (un
mendigodediei centavos), and never, never accept a smaller
gratuity." Drawing himself up with an air of pride, he
continued, " I shall be honored to sing for your entertain-
ment a song of old Spain or one of our noble Mexican airs,

16 MEXICO

but always for a fee of ten cents, never for less, for I am
a ten-cent beggar, senor, poor as I am."

It was impossible to resist this touching protest, so with
an apology I handed the courtly vagrant his proper fee,
which he acknowledged with "a thousand thanks" (Mil
gracias, senor) and a graceful bow. At the other end of
the car the mob of beggars were scrambling for copper
coins thrown to them by my fellow-passengers. The mel-
ancholy minstrel glanced at them, shrugged his shoulders
and waved his hand deprecatingly. "Ah, senor," he ob-
served, "those poor people, they have to work hard for
their bread ; good folk, worthy folk, well deserving of your
charity ; but they give you a very bad impression of Mexico.
Pray, senor, do not class them with poor musicians like
myself." With these words he commenced twanging his
discordant instrument again, and once more burst into a
song so dismal that it seemed to make the gloomy
weather even more depressing. Fortunately, our train
commenced to move on a few moments later, and Cordoba
and the courtly ten-cent beggar were soon lost to view.

During our short stop at the station, Indian women
and children had offered us fruit and flowers at tempting
prices; large bunches of camellias for a few centavos,
luscious pineapples of six to eight pounds for ten cents
apiece, all the bananas and oranges you could carry, for
a few cents. Cordoba well maintained its reputation as
a place of fruit and flowers.

As we travelled farther from Vera Cruz there was a
noticeable drop in the temperature, and while it was not
cold, still one would have welcomed the prospect of arriv-
ing at a comfortable country house with a cheerful wood
fire blazing in the hall. No doubt the black sky and the
rain which began to fall had something to do with this
feeling, but the altitude probably had much more.

THM TROPICS UT A u NORTH fR " 17

In Mexico almost everything depends on the altitude,
and it is to altitude that Mexico owes its three climates.
Being well within the tropic* and near the equator, it is
naturally always thought of as a warm country, but only
parts deserve this character. Geographically speaking,
Mexico is situated in North America. It has a maximum ,
length of 1990 miles, is 540 miles across at the widest |x>int, I
and has a coast line of over 6000 miles.

On one side of this great country is the Atlantic or Gulf
Coast, and on the other the Pacific. Along both coasts
there is a broad, flat tract called the tierra caliente or " hot
land/' which is wholly tropical. In this region grow
tropical fruits and flowers of all kinds. Here, too, are vast
forests with a jungle of creeping plants, where are found
mahogany and numerous valuable dycwoods, which are
exported to all parts of the world. Much of this tropical
region is unhealthful, though the winds from the sea
generally mitigate the heat during the middle of the day,
and the nights and mornings, as a rule, are pleasantly
cool.

As you travel inland from the Atlantic or Pacific coasts,
the country constantly rises, until in the interior it reaches
an altitude of six or seven thousand feet. A goo<l idea of
this peculiar topography is given by the following cut,
which shows the profile of the country between the ports off
Tampico and Manzanillo on the eastern and western coasts.

18 MEXICO

At an altitude of four thousand feet or more, a sub-
tropical region known as the tierra templada, or temperate
land, is reached, where the climate is perpetually delightful.

A third region, six thousand feet or more above sea-level,
is called the tierra fria or cold land, although it is not
actually cold, for the mean temperature is not lower than
that of central Italy. In brief, perpetual summer, eternal
spring, and a temperature rarely cold enough for snow or
ice are the climatic joys which Mexico offers to the shiv-
ering American who travels southward in midwinter to
escape from the blizzards of the north.

THE BLIND BEGGAR.
One penuy, seiior, for God's sake."

CHAPTER H

FROM ORIZABA TO THE CAPITAL

NEARLY four centuries ago the soldiers of Cortes, march*
ing over the mountains from the coast to the Altec capital,
came to an Indian town situated in a beautiful valley,
intersected by rushing streams which kept it forever green.
The native* called the place Ahauialixapan or "joy in the
waters." The Spaniards, with their usual avidity, took
posocnninn of this attractive sjwt, but after heroic effort*
to pronounce its name, they wisely changed it to Orizaba.
Under Spanish rule, a nrw town arose on the site of the old,
and this became, in time, one of the most iinj>ortant plan-*
in Mexico. For generation* Oriiaba was a haven of refuge
for people who fled from the pestilent coast during the
yellow-fever Reason to seek health in the pure mountain
air. In later times It wan a favorite resort of the Emperor
Maximilian, who, during his brief reign, often sought rest
and quiet in the quaint old town. To-day it is a |x>pular
health resort, and has a host of visitors the year round,
its climate being perfect and its scenery charming.

I did not see Oriiaba under its best aspect, for like many
other places, it has its dreary days. Pursued by the
44 norther," I reached the ancient city at seven in the even-
ing, to find a heavy rain falling, while the chilly air was
reminiscent of an American November rather than what
one expects in the Mexican sub-tropics. Some Indian
urchins, looking pinched and cold in their ragged clothing
and bare feet, surrounded me as I left the train, offering

19

20 MEXICO

to carry my bags. They were pushed aside by a pictur-
esque-looking ruffian wearing a huge steeple-crowned som-
brero and swathed in a heavy red blanket drawn up to chin
height. He was an Orizaban cab driver, and he under-
took to drive me to my hotel in his cab or coche, a heavy,
lumbering vehicle of the station-fly order, with a capacious
leather hood. It was drawn by two vigorous mules, and
it needed them, for the paving of Orizaba's streets was even
worse than that of Vera Cruz.

I took a seat in the coche and was soon jolting through
some narrow streets lined with low, flat-roofed houses and
buildings, seldom over a story high, and quite Moorish-
looking. All were of the same washed-out tints of pink,
yellow and blue. The upper windows, I noticed, were
rarely glazed, but simply provided with wooden shutters ;
while the lower windows were crossed with thick, prison-
like bars of iron, not only as a protection against thieves,
but to guard the Juliets of the household from their swarthy
Romeos. This, of course, applies to the habitations of
the well-to-do. The poor in Mexican towns invariably
live in mere hovels of unbaked brick of only one story,
looking like rows of stables. They have no windows, and
light is admitted through the doorway only. When a
norther is blowing, the door is kept tightly closed, and the
shivering inmates endeavor, by excluding the fresh air,
to keep life in their thin-blooded bodies. I noticed that
very few of the shops of Orizaba had glazed windows, but
were mostly open to the street somewhat after the fashion
of English butchers' shops ; some were lighted with flaming
oil lamps, and others with gas. All the streets were well
lit with electric light. It was Saturday night, and despite
the rain, the streets were crowded with dark-skinned natives
in their picturesque attire.

The dress of the poorer classes, the Indians, called peons,

FROM ORIZABA TO TUX CAPITAL 21

is much the same throughout Mexico. Men wear a loose
suit of white linen, coat and trousers, sometimes no coat,
the shade of whiteness van-ing in accordance with the clean-
liness of the owner. Sometime** the clothing is white
(noon after washday ». sometimes it is a cream hue, hut usu-
ally it is a dark gray ! The trousers are often rolled up to
the knee. and the native goes atxwt with hare legs and feet.
Sometimes the trousers reach to the ankles, and he is pro-
vided with sandals strap|*tl over his bare feet. Stockings
are never worn. On his head the JM-OII wears a huge steeple-
crowned straw sombrero, with the brim anything up to two
feet wide. This is sometimes used as a basket. I often
saw Indians in the market buying fish or vegetables and
carrying them off in the brims of their hats.

In addition to his linen suit and straw sombrero, the peon
has a woollen blanket or farajte (pronounced *ah-rah-pay).
This is usually of bright red. with blark stripes at each end.
Sometimes it has a slit in the middle through which he
thrusts his head, the blanket falling over the Uxly like a
shawl. During the heat of the day the sarape is folded and
carried over the left shoulder. It serves the double purpose
of a garment by day and a blanket by night, for the peon
sleeps under it.

Mexicans of a higher class, when they can afford it, will
often buy a felt sombrero — the felt al>out a quarter of an
inch thick — decorated with gold and silver tinsel embroid-
ery. In country places the wealth of a man is usually
shown by the style of his hat. Some of the finer embroid-
ered sombreros cost over a hundred dollars. For riding,
extremely tight skin-fitting trousers, edged with small
metal buttons, are commonly worn, accompanied, in some
cases, with a heavily braided, short bolero coat ornamented
with bright buttons. This, with the gorgeous sombrero,
a very picturesque costume. In the towns and

22 MEXICO

cities, however, the middle and upper classes dress like
Europeans.

The Indian women are usually dressed in some cheap
kind of calico, the favorite material being a plain blue dotted
with white, or white dotted with blue, and all of them wear
a shawl or mantilla called the rebosa. This is generally of
some thin woollen or cotton stuff, and is always of a faded
blue tint. It is usually draped tightly over the head,
leaving only the face exposed. Thus attired, they have
a strong resemblance to the women of the East, and this is
especially noticeable when you meet one of them coming
from a village well, bearing a pitcher gracefully poised on
her head. As a rule, the women have an unkempt, be-
draggled appearance, and their coarse black hair is worn in
two untidy plaits.

The children of the poor have a very queer appearance,
looking exactly like little men and women. Boys dress
just like their fathers, having the same linen suits, big
straw sombreros and red sarapes ; girls wear the same long
dresses and blue rebosas as their mothers.

At first sight, the Mexican Indians seemed to me to be
a very melancholy race, and this first impression was con-
firmed by what I afterwards saw of them. As we drove
through the streets of Orizaba, filled with the passing throngs
of natives, moving silently, barefooted or shod with noise-
less sandals, there was rarely the sound of laughter; nor
was there any roughness or horseplay such as one would
have noticed in an American street filled with Saturday-
night shoppers. Strings of children glided along silently
after their parents, wonderfully subdued and grave, rarely
exchanging a word.

The shops were, of course, decorated with Spanish sign-
boards, the fondas (grocers) and dulcerias (confectioners)
being the most noticeable. Here and there, however, there

FROM ORIZABA TO THK CAPITAL - J

were indications of an American invasion, for over some
of the buildings were big sign-boards advertising " Dr. Dash,
American Physician/' or " Dr. Blank, American Dwitist."
In most Mexican cities nowadays there are several American
doctor* and dentist*. Some of the shops, apf>arentl y Amer-
ican, had English as well as Spanish signs, and proclaimed
themselves "The United States Grocery Co.," with "Goods
at cut prices," or the " American-Mexican Canning Co."

In less than ton minute* my rorA* took me to the Hotel
de France, which I found to be an excellent establishment ;
in fact, it has the reputation of being one of the Ixvt hotels
in Mexico. It is conducted by an enterprising Frenchman.

Arranged on much the same plan as many Spanish hotels,
this Mexican hotel was a large, square, stone building
having a central courtyard or |iatio. |iaved with tile?*, ojjcn
to the sky, and cent nil by a fountain surrounded with
palms and flowers. From here flights of stone stops led
to the upper stories, outside each of which then* was a wide
tiled gallery extending completely round the patio. The
rooms were entered from these galleries, and some which had
no outside windows were lighted by tinted glass panel.* in
the doors. The Ixxi rooms had tiled floors, each was su|>-
plied with one or two rugs, ami the bedsteads were of iron,
a very good plan in a count ry where fleas and other insect
peatfl are too common. Most of the Mexican hotels are
arranged and furnished in this way. The rooms arc in-
variably neat and well-kept, and the bedding, strange to
say, in a land where cleanliness is not always regarded
as a virtue, is usually clean and fresh.

My Orizaba hotel had another feature which is common to
hotels throughout Mexico. Just inside the entrance there
was a small office where guests signed the register and ar-
ranged for their rooms. Outside the office there was a
large blackboard with the numbers of the rooms arranged

24 MEXICO

in rows. As soon as a room was assigned to a new arrival,
his name was written with chalk on this blackboard oppo-
site to the number of his room. Any one could thus see
at a glance who was stopping at the hotel.

Chambermaids, I discovered, are seldom employed in
Mexican hotels, their places being taken by men-of-all-
work, sometimes young, sometimes elderly, called mozos
(boys). There is a mozo on each floor who acts as boot-
black, porter, messenger and chambermaid ; he takes away
one's linen to some remote laundry and brings it back the
next day, clean and snowy white. In the larger towns
the mozo often speaks a little English and acts as interpre-
ter for guests who do not understand Spanish. In the
American hotels in Mexico he is less in evidence, as these
establishments usually employ chambermaids.

The Mexican hotels are comfortable enough for the
average traveller, and if they had only been made sound-
proof they would be still nearer perfection. I thought so,
at least, when I was awakened about six o'clock the next
morning by a terrible clanging of church bells. This was
my first experience of what I afterwards found to be the
greatest public nuisance in Mexico. The Mexican churches
do not possess sweet chimes, but generally have from one
to half a dozen large, harsh-toned bells . Commencing early
in the morning, and continuing at frequent intervals during
the day, a muscular peon clutching a rope attached to the
bell-clapper clangs away with all his strength, making an
awful din. Sometimes he wields a sort of sledge-hammer,
beating the bell from the outside with all the vigor of a
village blacksmith. When all the church bells in a town
are kept clanging in this way, the din is deafening,

Unable to enjoy any more sleep on account of these ec-
clesiastical instruments of torture, I went down to an early
breakfast and afterwards took a stroll through the town.

/BO* ORIZABA TO THE CAPITAL 25

Although the rain had stopped, the sky was still overcast,
and the mountains were wreathed with white clouds.
Along the streets poured a steady stream of Indian men
and women returning from early mass, tramping patiently sJ
through the mud, the majority of them being barefooted. '
The men had their red blanket* drawn tightly round them,
looking half frozen, although tin- air was as mild as an early
summer morning. Only the |>oorer classes attend early
mass. Later on I saw numlxTs of white women and a few
men walking and driving to the eleven o'clock service.
I also noticed several men whom I instinctively recognized
as priests despite their dress, which i- not what one is ac-
customed to see in other Catholic countries. The laws
having forbidden them to ap|>ear in public in their clerical
draes, the Mexican priests have adopted the plan of wearing
a peculiar black cloak which, while not exactly ecclesiastical,
is not worn by men of any other class. With this they wear
an ordinary derby or silk hat. The cloak enables them to
be distinguished a long way off. Some zealous op|>onents
of the church want to have this ch»ak declared illegal and
various other anti-church lawn enforced.

There are some fine old churches in Orizaba dating from
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries ; the oldest, called
Santa Teresa, was built in l.'rfVi. The cathedral, which
stands in the main plaza, was built in 17'JO, and is a large,
imposing edifice.

A stroll through Oriiaba gives one a very good idea of
the arrangement of Mexican towns which, following the
Spanish system, were all originally built round a public
square or plasa. As the towns have increased in size,
similar plazas, which arc sometimes called alameda*, have
been provided, until each quarter eventually has one of
these little parks. Oriiaba has several of them. On one
side of the plasa in the average Mexican small town there

26 MEXICO

is generally the principal church and the municipal building
or city hall. The lower story of the latter is usually formed
of arcades called portales, which are the centre of business,
and there the citizens rest and take their liquid refreshment.
The plaza serves as the general breathing place, and in the
smaller towns the market is held in it. On Sundays and
feast-days a band usually plays there ; in the larger towns
a military band, and in the smaller a municipal or police
band. The military bands, as a rule, are excellent, for the
Indians have a natural ear for music . It is very interesting
to see these swarthy musicians rendering classical com-
positions, such as selections from "Tannhauser" and
"Lohengrin," for there seems to be so little in common
between German legend and song and the descendants of
the Aztecs.

Orizaba is a large, straggling place, but clean and well
kept, with a population of thirty-five thousand. It lies
in a beautiful valley, and towering above the wooded, ever
green mountains which look down upon it rises the great
snow-capped peak of Mount Orizaba, over eighteen thou-
sand feet above the level of the sea. The surrounding
country is wonderfully fertile, and there are numerous
sugar and coffee plantations. Through the middle of the
town there flows a rushing, foaming stream, spanned by
ancient arched bridges of massive stone; and along its
banks the Indian women may be seen during the day vig-
orously washing the clothes which seem to attract dirt so
quickly and are so seldom clean.

Although situated in the temperate zone, the town is
just on the border of the tropics ; it has the moisture of the
lowlands, with the cool breezes of the uplands, and is there-
fore one of the finest winter resorts in Mexico, the climate
being always mild. It is very healthy, and has none of the
annoying insects or tropical fevers of the hot region. With

FROM ORIZABA TO THE CAPITAL

to soft-tinted, one-storied buildings, with their red-tiled
roofs, and its background of green mountains, the old town
is wonderfully picturesque. The natives take life easily,
in spite of which the place has a cheerful air of prosperity.
Like the S|>aniards. they seem to poaMM that happy faculty
of post poning disagreeable things until maAaiui — the mor-
row. A restful, dreamy atmosphere hangs over the ancient
city, and this I afterwards felt in some other Mexican towns.

As it was Sunday morning when I took my walk, the
streets were, of course, unusually quiet. At intervals a
small street-car, drawn by two mules. (Missed leisurely along
the main street — a remarkably wide thoroughfare —
from the railway station to the other em! of the town.
Nobody seemed to hum*, and that good oM maxim, "To
save time is to lengthen life," was ap|>arently unknown to
the placid Oriialian.*. I was informed, however, that a
great change was in prospect ; for in the? course of a few
months the town was to ap|>car in all the glory of asphalt
paving, and the slow-moving mule-car was to l>e replaced
by swift American electric traction. i'erha|is this entrance
of American progress may prove to be the seifieiit in the
Oriiaban Paradise, and will some day replace the ease and
quietness of the old town with all the excitement of
American hustle.

Founded by the Sfianiards ami inhabited by their de-
irfffindantff, Oriiaba naturally retains many features of the
life of old Spain, and the same thing can t>c said of all the
old towns and cities of Mexico. As I strolled along it*
narrow, cobble-paved streets that Sunday morning, I could
easily have imagined myself in Toledo or Granada ; and the
impression was heightened by the ap|>earance of the Span-
ish-looking, Spanish-tipeaking people who passed on their
way to church. Many of the women wore the black man-
tilla gracefully draped round their beads; the men, for

28 MEXICO

the most part, wore clothes of semi- American cut, with soft
felt or derby hats, though one occasionally appeared in the
national sombrero.

In one of the back streets I witnessed a scene which
was even more typically Spanish, when I came to a queer
old drinking place filled with peons enjoying their Sunday-
morning dram. Attracted by the sound of music, I glanced
through the wide open doorway into the vault-like interior,
with its grimy, time-stained walls, where numerous barrels
stood on the rough stone flagging. A brigandish-looking
half-breed, with a bright red handkerchief tied about his
head, was strumming a guitar and singing what seemed
to be a wild gypsy song. His audience of peons were
standing about the place or squatting on the barrels.

A few minutes later, when the song had ended, a half-
breed of rather intelligent appearance walked in, carrying
a newspaper in his hand. On the back of his head was a new
felt sombrero, and he wore a decent suit of clothes, which
made him look quite a superior order of being to the scantily
dressed Indians in the drinking den. Lifting his hat in
salute, the newcomer said, "Senores, with your permis-
sion, I will entertain you with the news." The suggestion
was evidently received with favor, for several of the peons
responded with "Bueno, bueno" (Good, good). With this
encouragement, the man with the newspaper leaped on
to one of the barrels and commenced reading a news
item.

Owing to widespread illiteracy among the poorer classes,
| public newspaper readers of this sort have become a fea-
? ture of Mexican life. Very few men of the peon class are
able to read or write, though compulsory education has
been introduced in recent times. Thus it is that the news-
paper reader is enabled to earn a living by making the
rounds of the drinking places and reciting the news of the

FROM ORIZABA TO TUM CAPITAL 29

day. A certain amount of literary skill w required to follow
this strange calling successfully ; the reader is, in fact, a
sort of peripatetic news editor, for he selects only two or
three items which he knows will please his audience. The
Orisaban reader, for instance, started with the most im-
portant topic of the day. He commenced upon an article
which discussed the financial panic then in progress in tht»
United States, and the hard times it had caused in Mexico
through the closing of mines and other enterprises ront rolled
by Americans. Things were improving, said the nr\\>j iaj *T.
and thousands of Mexicans who hail lost employment would
soon be going hack to work and earning plenty of money
to buy food and drink.

Some of the peons in the audience apparently l>elonged
to the great army of unemployed, for they hhook their
head* and shrugged their shoulder* at the mention of
44 work." They brightened up, however, at the magic word
"drink," and applauded by rapping their glasses on the
banvl-tn|r. and giving vent to a chorus of " Buenos."

The reader next selected what jmirn:ili-i.- would call a
44 human- interest story." In tragic tones, with appro
priate gestures, he entertained his audience with a desjiatch
from northern Mexico which related how a drink-crazed
peasant had set fire to the hut of a neightx>r with whom
he had a feud, shooting down his enemy as he attempted
to escape, and despatching him with a knife. Pursued by
the rurales, the murderer had fallen riddled with bullets
after opening fire on his pursuers. Thi* "top of the col-
umn" story seemed to excite intense interest, and at its
conclusion there was another outburst of " Bravo,"
" Muy bien," and such comments as "Buen hombre"
(Good man), " Hombre valiente" (Brave fellow). Leaping
down from his perch, the itinerant editor went round,
sombrero in hand, making a collection; then bowing

30 MEXICO

politely, with a "Buenas dias, senores," he sauntered off
to the next drinking place.

I had a delightful walk through Orizaba's principal resi-
dential quarter, where old Spanish-looking mansions of
crumbling stone were set in the midst of large gardens,
beautifully shaded with palms/ orange trees and other
tropical growths. In the Alameda, lined with venerable
trees and adorned with statuary and fountains, I found a
wealth of flowers — oleanders and lilies and geraniums
of all shades, in full bloom. Here, too, there.were swarms
of blackbirds, hopping about the shady walks and perching
in the trees, piping merrily. There were myriads of these
birds all over the town, and they seemed to be as prolific as
sparrows in our cities.

Lounging about the street corners or squatting along the
curb, smoking and gossiping in their quiet way, were nu-
merous Indian men and women, many of whom had evi-
dently come in from the country. Though they all seemed
wretchedly poor, their faces bore a look of patient content-
ment, and occasionally one would actually smile at some
choice bit of repartee. Near an old bridge, in the main
street, spanning the mountain stream, there sat an old
Indian dame, in a much-worn rebosa, placidly puffing a
cigarette. Before her was spread a poor little stock con-
sisting of half a dozen bananas, two or three oranges and a
few sweets. As I stood there, a small mongrel dog came up
and sniffed at her wares. Seizing a stick, the old woman
dealt the animal a vicious blow and he ran off yelping down
the street.

An ill-tempered, cruel race, these Indians, I thought;
but a moment later I gained a different impression, when
there came along a small barefooted, grave-looking Indian
urchin, scantily dressed in ragged cotton clothing, with a
piece of old bagging about his shoulders. He halted near

FROM ORIZABA TO TUX CAPITAL '.1

the little pile of fruits and ftuecU and gated wistfully at
them. Catching night of him, the old woman's face under-
went a remarkable change, and actually took on an expres-
sion of benevolence. Picking up a bright red stick of candy
from her little stock, she held it toward- the child. " Here,
mnn." she said, "this is yours." As he took it with a
polite "Gracias, seflora," the old dame gave him a kindly
pat on his closely crop|>ed head and sent him off overflow-
ing with happiness. This I afterwards discovered to !»«•
typical of the Indians of Mexico, — full of the most amaz-
ing contrasts of cruelty and kindness, at once hateful and
admirable.

The public market is one of the most interesting sights of
Orizaba, with its array of tropical fruits and flowers, and
their vendors in the bright costumes of a tropical clime.
It has probably not materially altered since the days of the
Aitecs. In a description of ancient Mexico, iiernal Diaz,
one of the followers of Cortes, expresses surprise at the large
crowds of |MH)ple which were seen in the After towns, the
order which prevailed and the variety of merchandise
displayed. In his account, he says: "The meat market
was stocked with fowls, game and dogs. Vegetables,
fruits, articles of food ready -dressed, salt, bread, honey
and sweet pastry , made in various ways, were also sold here.
Other places in the market were ap|M>inted to the sale of
earthenware, wooden household furniture, such as tables
and benches, firewood, pipes, tobacco. rop|ier axes, and
working tools and wooden vessels highly painted. The
entire square was enclosed in piazzas under which great
quantities of grain were stored, and there were also shops
for various kinds of goods." The markets in Mexican
towns are to-day practically the same. Low piazzas of
solid stone enclose the market square and these are occupied
by small shops ; the central part, open to the sky, is filled

32 MEXICO

with the stalls of the Indian vendors, men and women,
who squat on the ground on a rush mat with another sus-
pended above them for protection against the sun, their
little stock spread before them.

During the morning hours in the Orizaba market the
crowd of natives was so dense that it was almost impossible
to push a way through them. Among the fruits on sale I
noticed mangos, zapotes, granaditas, sapodillas, bananas,
cocoanuts and other tropical fruits. Most of these look
much more tempting or interesting than they really taste.
The Mexican mango does not compare with the East Indian
variety, being smaller and having much more of the peculiar
turpentine flavor. The zapote is a small green melon which
grows in clusters on trees and contains great quantities of
pips resembling black currants ; the sapodilla, which looks
something like a small round potato, is rilled with a dark
yellowish pulp of insipid sweetness; the granadita is the
fruit of the passion-flower, and contains a slippery, whitish
pulp filled with small black seeds.

Everywhere in the market there was a great variety of
beans, black, brown and yellow, — beans fried in fat, called
frijoles, being the staple food of the poorer classes. There
were also great heaps of golden maize, for corn and not
wheat is the Mexican "staff of life." This is cooked in
various ways, but more especially in the form of unleavened
cakes known as tortillas, which are a distinctive feature of
humble Mexican life, and are even popular among the
wealthier classes.

Considerable labor is necessary to evolve the tortilla,
and many women devote their days and a large portion of
their nights to its manufacture. The kernels of corn are
first soaked in lime-water until they become soft; they
are then placed on a flat kneading-stone called a metate,
and ground with a rude pestle until they are reduced to

FROM ORIZABA TO TBM CAPITAL 88

fine paste. This is shaped into small round cakes, which
are worked between the hand* and patted until flattened
out very thin. They are then baked on an iron pan over
a charcoal tire. Having neither salt nor Beaconing, they
are rather insipid to the unaccustomed palate, although
when served hot they are not unpala table. In many
households a special cook is employed to make tortillas
and serve them piping hot at mealtimes. When cold,
they are rather leather)', but they are said to be very nu-
tritious, and are often carried by Mexicans when making
long journeys in unsettled jwirts of the country.

The meat in the market did not look inviting, some that
was dried being as black as ink. and seeming <)uite unfit
for human food. The Spanish word for meat, carne (pro-
nounced carnay)fi* not pleasant to the ear. and when you
Me some of this evil-looking Mexican meat, it somehow
reminds you of the Kngiish won! " carrion." The meat,
too, is very carelessly handled. A butcher's boy can often
be seen in a Mexican town cam-ing a string of tough
beef-steaks and using it as a whip on any stray dog that he
happens to meet.

In addition to the eatables, there were all kinds of native
baskets on sale, kitchen utensils, toys, bright red pottery,
goat's milk, trinkets and clothing. A (icon's cotton suit,
by the way, costs about a dollar, his sandals ten cents and
his blanket about a dollar and a half, so that he is fully
clothed for leas than three dollars.

A most interesting pan of the market is the pottery
department. The shapes of the various vessels have been
handed down from Altec times, and are probably much the
same as those seen by Cortes. Many of the pieces are fan-
tastic in shape and ornamentation ; some of them have a
graceful appearance, resembling old Grecian or Roman
pottery. When it is considered that the native potter has

34 MEXICO

no other tools than his wheel, a piece of broken glass and a
horsehair, the results are certainly marvellous. With the
hair he trims off the top, while the glass is used for smooth-
ing the rough places. Some of the water-bottles and other
pieces are ornamented with pieces of china, fragments of
broken cups, plates, etc., arranged in tasteful patterns while
the clay is soft. Each part of Mexico has its distinctive
pottery, that of Cuernavaca being distinguished from that
of Guadalupe, Aguas Calientes or Guadalajara by its color
and design.

In a quiet comer of the market was the evangelista or
public letter-writer, seated at his little table with a pot of
ink and a pen, ready to dash off a matter-of-fact business
note or an ardent love-letter for natives unable to write.
In another place were the cobblers prepared to cut and fit
leather sandals in a few minutes. Pushing through the
crowd went the picturesque aguadores or water-carriers,
with their huge earthen water-coolers strapped to their
backs, from which many a refreshing draught was supplied.
In towns where there is no public supply of water, the
aguadore takes water daily from house to house.

Queer sweets and pastry, called dulces, are sold in the
markets. The Mexicans imitate the French in their con-
fectionery, but it is a very poor imitation, their sweets being
over-flavored and insipid and their pastry heavy and in-
digestible.

At various street-corners during my walk, I noticed the
policemen of Orizaba, swarthy Indians, most of them,
dressed not unlike the policemen of country towns in
France; but instead of a sword they have a revolver
strapped to the waist by a belt filled with a row of car-
tridges. They looked stalwart, efficient fellows, and perform
their duty well in keeping order.

Later in the morning, in company with several fellow-

FROM ORIZABA TO TUE CAPITAL > •

traveller* who had come from Verm Cms and had flopped
at the Hotel de France, I got on the little street-car and rode
to the railway station to continue my journey to Mexico
City. The waiting-room and the platform of the station
were packed with Indian men, women and children. some
of whom had come to take the train, and other* to see their
friend.** depart. When the train came in at eleven o'clock,
we found therr was only one fi ret -claw car, and that wan
pretty well filled with passengers, -< > that we had hard work
to find place* for ourselves and our portable baggage.

Mont of our fellow- passengers were Mexican.* of the middle
claw, chiefly men: and nearly all of them Mnokcd in the
car, as there was no compartment for smokery. Mexicans
are rarely pleasant travelling companions, as they generally
carry a lot of bag*, boxes and bundles, which they pile
in the seats, and they chatter incessantly. The women,
strange to say, are much li-ss talkative than the men.
On our train the second-clam cars were filled with Mexicans
of the lower middle class ; the third class cars were literally
(tacked with Indians, mostly men.

Railway travel in Mexico is very cheap, the third-class
fare being less than one cent a mile. The Indians, I
afterwards discovered, have a perfect mania for travelling,
and when they are not spending their -pan- ca.«h in gambling
or on fiery native drinks, they buy a railway ticket. It
apparently matters very little where they go, and they
seem to wander off without any definite object in view.
The Mexican third-class car is arranged on the American
system, has hard wooden benches, and is not inviting; yet
it is always packed with Indians, who exchange cigarettes,
drink each other's health in pulque and mescal, which they
carry, and gossip incessantly. In fact, for the peon, the
third-class car is a son of travelling workingmen's club.
He has genial company, and sees the country as he travels.

36 MEXICO

When the train stops at a station, he gets out and gossips
with brother Indians on the platform.

But a pleasure-trip of this kind sweeps away the poor
peon's earnings just as the craving for drink does. While
we were travelling from Orizaba to Mexico City, I witnessed
a pathetic scene at a small railway station which strikingly
illustrated this fact. An Indian was on the platform with
his wife and several children, and some friends were urging
him to take a ride, just as I have seen the companions of a
British workman urging a comrade, fighting against temp-
tation, to enter a public house and have "just one more
drink." " Don't go, Juan," urged the tearful wife; "we
owe for rent, and the grocer hasn't been paid." The
children, bellowing loudly, hung on to their father's blanket.
"Aw, come along, Juan, old fellow; don't be henpecked/'
said his swarthy companions in equivalent Spanish, pulling
him towards the car. "A few miles won't hurt you or the
missus." The engine gave a whistle, the train began to
move, the peons jumped on, and poor, weak Juan, unable
to resist temptation, sprang in after them. As the train
moved off, the poor wife, realizing that the week's wages
would be spent in travel, ran after the car, wringing her
hands and gesticulating wildly to her husband, who looked
stolidly at her from the window. Railway travel in most
countries is either a luxury or a necessity, but Mexico is
the only land in which it amounts to a positive vice.

From Orizaba the railway runs through fertile fields
and wooded hills until it reaches the mountains and enters
a deep ravine called the Canon del Infernillo or Little Hell,
a wild spot, filled with numerous cascades and streams of
rushing, roaring waters. The train here makes a wonderful
ascent, twisting and climbing over twenty-four hundred feet
in nine miles . When the train is coming from the other direc-
tion, Indians offer fruit and flowers for sale at the summit ;

FROM ORIZABA TO TBE CAPITAL 87

then, while the train is travelling the nine miles, they scam-
per down the twenty-four hundred feet by a short mountain
footpath and meet it again. Climbing steadily upwards,
the train crosses numerous iron bridges, spanning deep
chasms, passing through many tunnels, sweeping round
dizzy, beetling points, the* lint* crowing and rccrossing itself,
twisting up serpent like to the mountain heights. Far
above, as the train climlw upward*, you see one or two
white specks which are stations. Looking hark wan is. you
can sec the wonderful twisting* of the line. The scenery
is often inexpressibly grand, the pink-tinged, treeless moun-
tains rising on all sides from the foliage of the foot-hills.

At Alia Luz, when* the engine takes water, the traveller
looks down on the village of Maltrata. thousands of feet
Inflow in the valley, which is spread out like a toy city on a
green carpet, with its white church, its cent nil plaza, its
tiled and thatched houses, its little line of streets, and its
surrounding green fields and orchards ; and high above the
valley, and far aUive where the train is standing, tower the
mountains, culminating in the snow-tipped |*»ak of Orizaba,
which seems to pierce the skies. From this jxiint there is a
steady and continued climb upward-, until K-jx-ranza is
reached at an altitude of SO44 feet. As the train travelled
upward to this place, the air grew quite -harp, and the rare-
fied atmosphere caused a noticeable quickening of the action
of the lungs.

While travelling slowly up the mountains, we witnessed
a novel and pathetic sight. Two natives, cam-ing a bright
blue coffin, trotted down a mountain path, followed by a
peon and three weeping children, keeping closely together
at the same jog-trot. They were evidently bound for the
municipal cemetery outside a little village far below. The
Mexican country cemetery is very different from the peace-
ful God's acres in our own country districts, and is simply

38 MEXICO

a plot of waste land surrounded with a wall of whitewashed
brick. A few of the graves are marked with rude wooden
crosses; the others are unmarked. The place is usually
overgrown with coarse grass and cactus.

At Esperanza, which we reached at half -past one, there
was a halt of thirty minutes for luncheon. None of the
Mexican railway trains have dining-cars attached, and stops
for meals are made at certain stations, the customary
price being fifty cents. Passengers of all classes have
equal privileges in the dining-room, and unless you are care-
ful, you are apt to find yourself seated with a motley com-
pany of unwashed natives whose manners constantly re-
mind you that fingers were invented before forks. The
white passengers on the train — that is, the foreigners and
best class of Mexicans — usually gather at one table, and
it is advisable to wait a few minutes until the company is
seated, so as to make sure of getting a place at the right
table. Though meals are rather crudely served, the food
is generally well cooked and palatable.

At Esperanza, mountain climbers can travel by road to
the village of Chalchicamula, whence a trail through the
woods leads to the foot of Mount Orizaba. This giant peak
of over eighteen thousand feet is, next to Mount McKinley
in Alaska, the highest peak in North America. For an
experienced mountain climber the ascent is difficult but
not dangerous. In making the ascent, one passes through
all varieties of climates, from the sub-tropical region of the
valley to the pine woods of the north, and then on to the
cold, icy, snow-capped Arctic regions. The scenes to be
witnessed on every side are magnificent.

Travelling from Esperanza down to Vera Cruz, the descent
in many places is so steep that steam-power is not used.
The train runs down the mountains by its own weight,
brake-power only being necessary to regulate the pace.

FROM ORIZABA TO T//JT CAPITAL 89

After leaving Esperania, the line reaches the flat table-
land*, bordered with mountains in the distance, dry and
dusty in the winter time. The country is dreary and mo-
notonous, with scarcely a tree to be seen. Here and there
I noticed a big white hacienda building or ranch-house set
in the midst of the plain, where large herds of cattle* were
browsing on withered grass, the only signs of cultivation
being occasional fields where the dry, yellow Indian-corn
stalks left from the la*t harvest were still standing. This
tin*, dusty appearance of the country was, I found, char-
acteristic of the highlands of Mexico in the winter months.
There is then little or no rain, everything gets dry and
parched, and only where there is an irrigated patch is there
any green vegetation. Sometimes the train f>a*sed over
a dry watercourse, for in the higher lands most of the
streams and rivers dry up during the rainless season.
When the rains set in, they soon begin flowing again, and
frequently get into a Hooded condition. Mexico is very
poorly supplied with rivers, excepting along the Gulf coast,
where they are very numerous and quite large at the mouth,
but not navigable for any distance.

The monotonous country through which we travelled
during the afternoon was rendered still more depressing by
the weather, the sky which in Mexico is usually a clear, deep
blue being still dark and cloudy. Blowing from the coast,
the "norther" was making itself felt in the high table-land.
There were, however, occasionally a few interesting scenes
to relieve the tedium of our journey. At one village there
was an encampment of soldiers, infantry and cavalry, and
a long line of tents. Everything seemed to be conducted in
good military order. At nearly every station where a stop
was made the train was besieged by a throng of wild-looking
Indian women and children selling trailed eggs, fried chicken,
:.• • . Mrxiraii ih-li — . H» h M fc*mftl -. :tiM DOtta • ata

40 MEXICO

drinks. These were eagerly bought by the Mexican pas-
sengers, who seemed to be continually eating. Mexican
railway stations, especially in the small towns, are always
crowded, as the arrival and departure of a passenger train
— sometimes there is only one daily — is quite an important
event. Poor people with nothing else to do and loafers of
every description gather to see the train, smoking and chat-
ting together, staring at the passengers and discussing them
with much apparent enjoyment. Beggars of all kinds, the
lame, the diseased and the blind, are always on hand,
clamoring for centavos, and singing lustily to the accom-
paniment of their queer old harps, fiddles and mandolins.

We passed very few villages, and these mostly consisted
of square, flat-roofed huts of adobe or sun-dried brick.
Adobe is an important feature of life in Mexico and is the
salvation of the poor Mexican. Wood being very expensive,
and stone or manufactured brick out of the question for
him, he has to fall back on mother earth for shelter. The
soil in many places is a sort of clay which, after being mixed
with water and straw, — usually the refuse from stables, —
is put in square wooden moulds and baked in the sun.
This sun-dried brick is called adobe, and it is wonderful how
long it will stand the stress of sun and rain in a country
where there are no severe frosts. Not only does the poor
man make use of this cheap building material, but many
a pretentious wall that is covered with a respectable coating
of stucco and finished in imitation of stone, when it even-
tually falls into decay, shows that within it has relied for
strength and support upon adobe.

Later in the day our train steamed across the plains of
Apam, relieved only by monotonous rows of maguey plants,
from which the national drink, pulque (pronounced pool-
kay), is made. Apam is, in fact, the most important dis-
trict in Mexico for the cultivation of this plant — a species

FROM ORIZABA TO TOE CAPITAL 41

of agave which looks a good deal like the " aloe" used for
ornamental purfxwes in American g^rfff and sometimes
called the "century plant," from the fiction that it blooms
only once in a hundred years. The Mexican plant, how-
ever, is much larger, it* dark green spiked leave* sometimes
reaching a length of fifteen foot, a foot in breadth and sev-
eral inches in thickness. From nix to ten years are required
for the plant to mature in its native noil. It then sends up ]
a tall, stiff spike, which is covered with clusters of small, j
bcll-«ha|>cd blossoms as white as bleached cabbage, and j
then dies. In maguey plantations, however, when the
flowering time arrives, the plant is market! with a cross,
the stalks being then full of the sap for which it is culti-
vated. To obtain this, the entire heart is removed, leaving
a natural ba>in in which the sap collects. In t hi- condition
the liquor is sweet and perfectly clear, and is called agua
miel or honey-water. The sap, which gathers quickly.
is removed two or three times a day by an Indian, usually
provided with a long, hollow gourd with a hole at each end.
He places the small end of the gourd in the sap. and applying
his mouth to the opening at the other end, sucks the liquid
into the gourd. This primitive method, however, is being
supplanted by a long siphon, which enables the sap to be
removed more quickly and cleanly.

After its removal, the sap is emptied into a pigskin which
the gatherer carries on his back. Kach plant yields on an ,
average about six quarts of sap daily for a month or more. |
It then withers and dies and another is planted in its place.
The sap collected each day is put in barrels and fermented,
when it is ready for the market. Pulque, after fermenta-
tion, tastes a good deal like stale buttermilk diluted with
stagnant water — a thin, starchy, evil-smelling liquor.
After further fermentation, it acquires a putrid taste. The
natives like it best immediately after fermentation, as it

42 MEXICO

is supposed to spoil — if it can spoil — within twenty-
four hours afterwards, and there is a law prohibiting its
sale after that time. Thus it must be drunk at once, which
may account for the energy with which the Indians imbibe
it. Very few of the better classes drink pulque; it is the
beverage of the poor.

A taste for pulque has to be acquired by strangers. The
first experience is always repellent, but familiarity is said
to breed contempt for its nauseous qualities. Great
virtues are claimed for the drink, especially in the cure of
kidney diseases. Some Mexican doctors prescribe it for
these ailments, but several physicians who have investi-
gated its alleged curative powers assert that it is of no
value whatever.

Pulque was first known in Mexico, so it is said, in 1050
A.D., when a beautiful Indian maiden with the unbeautiful
name of Xochitl brought to the Toltec emperor, Teopan-
caltzin, a large pot of sweet liquid which she had drawn
from the maguey plants in her garden. The emperor
was so pleased with the drink that he married the girl, and
in course of time a son was born who was christened Me-
conetzin, meaning "The son of the maguey plant." Queen
Xochitl did not make pulque, but merely extracted the
sweet, sticky juice of the plant, the agua miel. In the
northern parts of Mexico the natives drink this, and it has
no bad effects.

For a hundred miles and more round Mexico City there
are pulque estates where the maguey plant is cultivated,
and on some of these over a thousand peons are employed
attending to the plants and gathering the sap. Special
pulque trains loaded with this vile beverage run into the
capital every day from the country districts. It is sold
at pulque shops, the lowest class of Mexican saloons,
patronized only by Indian peons. A cheap drink, it costs

NATIONAL |.|:INK
< lathering thr utA£iv} ««|> for making

FROM ORIZABA TO THK CAPITAL 43

only two or three centavos * gU«; yet the daily expendi-
ture for pulque in Mexico City is said to exceed twenty
thousand dollars.

Indulgence in this drink softens the brain, ruins the t
digestion and |>araJyies the nerves; while it.-* effects on
the native |x)pulation an* HO destructive that it h:is U-m
well named "the curse of Mexico." It is principally drunk j
in Mexico City, where the Indian population is the most
degraded in the Republic. Many employers of lalx>r will
not hire men from the pulque district* if they can |>ossibly
get them from elsewhere. Tequila and mi-seal, two firry j
.-pints largely consumed in Mexico, an* distilled fnmi a '
smaller SJHVU* of maguey. They have some resemblance
to cheap brandy, and are equally deadly in their effects
on the human system.

Whatever his racial weaknesses may br, then* is no doubt
that the degeneracy of the native and the degrading con-
ditions under which he often lives, especially in the cities.
are mainly due to drink. Kvery centavo the Indian can
Hcra|M* together is s|>ent on pul<)uc and medical Most of
the murders in Mexico City an* due to drink. l*idqufrias,
as the drinking shops are called, are for the most part
located in the low quarters of the town, and an* recking,
foul -Murlling dea*« with earthen floors, the state of which
had best not lie inquired into. These bar-rooms are deco-
rated and | tainted in a very strange way. brightly colored
tissue paper and flags of all tints adorning them without
as well as within. The outside walls of these are usually
covered with pictures of warriors, chariots, battles and
even martyrs and saints, daubed over them in gay colors.

CHAPTER III

MEXICO CITY BY NIGHT

HOURS of steaming through bare plains, hemmed in by
bare mountains, cone-shaped, the true volcanic type !
Hours of dust and rattle, the scenery broken only by the
huge, flat-shaped maguey plant, interminable save where
a few acres round a lonely village church show the yellow-
ing stalks of last season's harvest of Indian corn ! Such
are the plains of Apam, through which the heavily loaded
train from Vera Cruz panted and jolted as the sun sank
and the quick-falling darkness made the weirdly lonely
scenery more weird, more lonely and desolate, if that were
possible. It is " starved, ignoble nature" in -very truth,
and the traveller wonders, as he stares through the gather-
ing darkness, where Mexico City can be hidden in the plain's
hopeless desert.

Mexico, however, is a land of contrasts, and this the
newcomer is not long in learning. Thus the transition
from the barbarically wild to the civilized is remarkably
sudden. For miles before reaching the Mexican capital
we passed through these sandy wastes and fields of maguey ;
past straggling Indian villages of adobe huts with garden-
plots enclosed with cactus, tall and straight, forming nat-
ural fence-posts, where Indian men in their red blankets
and straw sombreros, and unkempt Indian women in their
blue rebosas, squatted about and stolidly watched the train
flit by. Suddenly from the desert we entered what ap-
peared to be a suburban district where there were stone

44

MEXICO CITY BY NIGHT 45

houses of Spanish appearance, quite well built, with a few
Americanized business building* mixed with them, dec-
orated with garish advertising signs in Spanish and Knglish.
Then electric lights began to twinkle along the highways,
and an electric car filled with passengers glided onward
to the city. A few minutes later our train ran through
some rather squalid streets and then entered a railway
station which, though n-ally nothing but a glorified shed,
was the terminus in Mexico City. Then- are no stations
in the capital equal in size and appointments to those in
even a third-rate American city, and most of them are crude
in the extreme. They are arranged in much the name way
•0 arc the American stations, without raided platforms,
and having only one waiting-room for |>assengers of all
classes.

No sooner had the train come to a standstill than it
was besieged by a mob of cargadores. offering to carry our
baggage. These men wen* not in uniform, hut wore the
ordinary drew of the |>eon — a dirty linen suit, or just
trousers and shirt, and some had a ragged blanket wrapped
round their shoulders. As the cargadores are not allowed
to enter the railway carriage, the traveller passes his
bags to them through the window. I was duly raptured
by one of these burden -bearers, and following him emerged
to find a large crowd of calw, very much like the Parisian
fiacres, in the station yard. The drivers, however, were
very different in ap|>earance from the cochens of Paris,
for they all wore the heavy felt, steeple-crowned sombrero.

There are first- and second-class cal* in Mexico City,
the former bearing a small blue flag and the latter a red
flag. The blues charge fifty cents and the reds thirty cents
an hour. A local guide-book suggests that tourists can
remember the two classes by saying to themselves, " Red
cabs for the ordinary red-blooded people, blues for the blue

46 MEXICO

bloods." A year or two ago there was a third class of cabs
which sported a yellow flag, and were popularly known as
"yellow fevers." This, of course, was a joke, but they
certainly were pestilential conveyances, and the city is well
rid of them.

As I left the station in one of the red-flag cabs, bound
for my hotel, a policeman at the station exit noted down
the number and destination of the vehicle. This, I found,
is done at all the railway stations in the City, and it is an
excellent idea; for if anything happens to a passenger, if
he gets lost or robbed, the police are thus able to get some
trace of him.

My cab drove quickly through wide asphalted streets,
bright with electric lights, and bordered with flat-roofed
houses in Spanish style, with their balconies and barred
windows. Intermixed with these were a few modern-
looking business buildings and stores, and one or two
ancient churches with quaint towers and domes. Along
most of the streets through which I passed electric street-
cars were running, crowded with passengers. As in all
Mexican cities, these cars are American-made, and carry
passengers inside only. The brilliantly lighted streets,
the crowded cars and the passing throngs of well-dressed
people all gave me the feeling of being once more in a great
metropolis; and this seemed wonderfully strange when I
realized that less than half an hour before I had been
travelling through Indian villages and a lonely desert.

I had engaged quarters at the Hotel Sanz, which is under
American management, and as comfortable as hotels are
in the Mexican capital. There are no really fine hotels in
the city, most of them being old convents or mansions
partly rebuilt.

The Sanz was the usual large, square, flat-roofed build-
ing of three stories built round an unroofed patio, encircled

MEXICO CITY BY NIGHT 47

by galleries at each story ; the office, some reception rooms
and the restaurant were on the ground floor. In the centre
of the patio tin-re was the usual fountain, with its flowers
and shrubbery. All this would have looked very attractive
and refreshing on a sultry evening; but the "norther"
was still blowing, the sky was overcast, the air was dis-
tinctly chilly and there had just been a heavy shower of
rain. Kverything seemed damp, dark and cold. There
was not a stove or OJH-II fireplace in the hotel, but in this
respect it was no worse off than the other establish men ts.
None of them are heated, and when the weather is cold
there is absolutely no way of getting warm unless you go
to bed ; and even then you are apt to suffer, as the rarefied
air is very penetrating. I had a comfortable rtxmi, but
it made me shiver to look out on the cold, damp (latio and
hear the chill wind sighing round the ojien court.

Mexico City certainly needs a good modern hotel,
and at first sight such an establishment would seem to be
sure of making large profits and well paying its promoters.
The servant problem, however, and the extortionate
prices which are demanded for ground in eligible districts
have thus far prevented capitalists from embarking in
such an enterprise. Several well known American and
Ktin»|N-an hotel Icwees have investigated the matter,
but none of them have been willing to engage in what they
Consider would be a losing venture. The pn«ent hotels
are cheap and clean, but in the majority of them every-
thing is old and dingy, and the son-ice is very inferior.
Twenty years ago, I was told, visitors were making the
same complaint, but the need for a modern hotel is still
a crying one.

With all their faults, the Mexican hotels have one re-
deeming trait — they are not expensive. Those in the
big centres usually make separate charges for rooms and

48 MEXICO

meals, the price of rooms generally ranging from one
dollar fifty to three dollars a day, while meals are served
a la carte. Some of the hotels, however, serve a regular
dinner, which costs, as a rule, about a dollar. In Mexico
City, where the cost of living is higher than in small places,
one can manage to live very comfortably at a hotel, with
room and board, for four or five dollars a day. In the
smaller towns the hotels charge so much a day for room
and board together, usually from two to three dollars, the
price varying according to the size and position of the room.

Good servants are very difficult to get in Mexico, and
the domestics, who are chiefly drawn from the Indian
population, are seldom long contented with their places.
The chambermaids in the Americanized hotels — most
of them swarthy Indians or half-breeds — look a good
deal like typical gypsy maidens. They wear the usual
native costume, a loose skirt and bodice of speckled blue
and white and a rebosa draped over the shoulders. Their
coarse black hair is generally worn hanging down the back
in a long plait, their eyes are very dark, and they are much
given to wearing large ear-rings. When not at work, they
sit about the stairs in twos and threes, and to a stranger
seem very picturesque. Their ideas of housework are also
interesting to the stranger who does not have to employ
them as domestics, although their method of dusting
would drive an American housewife mad in a week. At
the end of a stick they tie a cloth and very lackadaisically
flick it around in the direction in which they think the dust
is. The whole process suggests the indolence with which
these folk regard all life's problems. : :

The district of Mexico City in which the principal hotels
are situated is historic ground, for some of the most stirring
events of Mexican history have been enacted in this par-
ticular quarter. Opposite the Hotel Sanz is the Alameda,

MEXICO CtTT BY HIGUT 49

a pretty little park about twice as large as City Hall Park,
New York, and from thin radiate some of the principal
streets. Once a piece of waste land, the Alameda is now a
long stretch of velvety green lawns and numerous beds of
tropical flowers, shaded by fine old trees and graceful palms.
In the centre is a handsome fountain, and on one side a
quaint Moorish kiosque, in which refreshments are sold.
One of the regimental band* plays in the Alameda every
day. Until recently, the little |>ark was Mexico City's
fashionable promenade, and on Sunday mornings the smart
people gathered there much in the same way as they do in
Hyde Park during the Ixjndon season. But the centre of
population is moving south west ward, and the Alameda is,
as far as I could observe, becoming chiefly the resort of the
poorer classes.

This H|x)t has a tragic history, having l>een the place of
execution for the victims of the Intubation. In l.r>74
twenty-one "jKwtilent Lutheran*" were burned there.
Crowds used to stand on the «te|* of the old church of San
Diego, which still faces the Alameda. to get a good view
of the burninp* ami watch the a*he* of the victims thrown
into a marsh which then exi*t«xl behind the church. The
Inquisition was not alx>li*hed in Mexico until 1812.

In the evening I took a walk through some of the prin-
cipal streets, and was astonished to find them so diverted.
The Mexican capital has a population of over four hundred
thousand, and I had read such glowing accounts of the
gayety of the place that I confidently exfiected to find it
a sort of transatlantic Paris. I was doomed to disappoint-
ment, however, for although it was only nine o'clock when
I took my walk abroad, all signs of life had departed from
the streets. Only a few stores and restaurants were open,
and very few people were to be seen. Nor was this due
to the fact that it was Sunday night, for the streets have

50 MEXICO

the same dreary appearance on other nights of the week.
There is a reason for this, and it is undoubtedly climatic.

While the day temperature, even in winter, is mild and
often hot, the nights in the capital are invariably chilly;
in the winter months dangerously so. The whole popula-
tion are terrified of the night air, and thus it is that after
eight o'clock Mexico City is almost a city of the dead, except
in some of the important business streets where such night
amusements as exist are to be found. A few theatres and
cinematograph shows afford amusement to those who will
face the night air; but there is no cafe life as in France,
and no sort of out-of-door life. Nobody seems to come to
the restaurants, except in the case of a few popular establish-
ments chiefly patronized by foreigners. At some of these
good dinners are served, during which excellent music is
played ; but there is little to attract one in going, on a cold
night, through deserted streets to half-deserted restaurants.
The theatres do not open until nine o'clock, and unless
there is some very good company playing, they do not attract
large crowds.

As I wandered along, I noticed a lantern standing in the
. middle of the street at nearly every crossing. These lights,
I found, belonged to policemen, for in all Mexican cities the
policemen stand at night at the street corners, placing their
lanterns in the middle of the road. The long row of flicker-
ing lights, up and down, in every direction, has a curious
effect; but to the law-abiding it is a comforting one, in-
dicating as it does that the Argus-eye of the law is on the
sleeping city. Unlike Diogenes, the Mexican policeman
employs his lantern to find a possible thief, but humorists
say that the lantern is really intended to aid the thief in
avoiding the guardians of the law .

In dress and appearance the police, who are chiefly
recruited from the Indians and half-breeds, are not unlike

MEXICO CITY BY NIGHT 61

the Parisian sergeant* do ville. On one side of his waist
the policeman wears what American policemen call "a
night stick," and on the other a revolver in strap|>ed.
During the day he walks his heat and taken an occaftinnal
rait by leaning against a door-fret. At night he wears a
long blue cloak, and if the weather is cold you will sw him
muffled up to the chin, breathing through the cloth. All
the Mexican maases seem to dread the night and oarly
morning air. Muffling themselves up in their blanket*,
the peons breathe through them with heroic disregard
of the germs which must lurk in their dirty folds ; women
cover their mouths with their reboaas, using them as res-
pirators. The popular idea is that unadulterated cold air
entering the lungs is likely to cause pneumonia.

Windows in the city are all Imrred with iron bars; the
heavy doors would mjuire dynamite to blow them open,
and fires are infrequent. The Mexican |>oliceman's lot
is therefore a happy one, for he has little to do, which is
what the Mexican lik«:s best. When the streets are desertiil,
he not infrequently leans against a door and gore to sleep;
but if you want him, his lantern enables you to find him ami
rouse him from his slumbers. The |>olicc are very numerous
all over Mexico, because the government has found it
advisable to keep itself well informed of affairs, in order
to check revolutionary movements. Even in the smallest
villages there is a uniformed |»lice. The* metro|>olitan
police appeared to me to be a very efficient body of men ;
they are very courteous to strangers, and have made the
streets of the capital almost as safe as those of New York.

Just as the London police are affectionately called
" Bobbies/' so the Mexican guardians of the law have their
pet name, "Serenes." The old Spanish watchmen whom
they supplanted used to call out the state of the weather
just as did the English watchmen in olden times. As

52 MEXICO

Mexican weather is usually clear, the watchman's cry was
simply a reiteration of the words " Tiempo sereno " (weather
clear), and thus they came to be called "Serenos." By
the way, they have a peculiar custom of arresting all parties
in an altercation. If a policeman is called to arrest an
offender the complainant will be arrested as well and
marched off to the police station. In such cases there is
only one thing to do and that is to obey orders, accom-
pany the policeman to the " comiseria," and trust to luck
in having the matter settled by the officer on duty there.

During my walk, I not only noticed the sharpness of
the air, which every poor man in the street was trying to
avoid by breathing through his cloak or blanket, but I also
noticed a peculiar atmospheric quality which somehow
reminded me of the high mountainous districts of Switzer-
land. I also felt a queer dizzy sensation in my head and
a slight difficulty in breathing. Then I remembered that
I was in a region of rarefied air, for Mexico City is nearly
8000 feet above the level of the sea. It is owing to this
high altitude that most visitors on their arrival experience
a slight headache and shortness of breath, which, however,
wears off in a day or two.

The geographical situation of Mexico City is unique
among the world's capitals. Lying on a beautiful plain
about sixty miles long and thirty broad, the city is encircled
by a chain of mountains, some of which have the charac-
teristically pointed volcanic shape, while nearer to the city
rises a long range of barren foot-hills. Owing to its altitude,
the city usually enjoys an even and moderate temperature,
the thermometer showing an average of seventy degrees
the year round, and even the summer is pleasantly cool.
Its peculiar situation, however, causes some very unpleas-
ant climatic conditions, such as the " norther" which was
blowing when I arrived. The sun is always waging war

>»

3

a I

ll
3 5

S -g

S o

MEXICO CITY BY J9IQBT /i:J

with the cloud troops and the mountain air, a combat of
nature which gives fin to sudden and trying changes.
The city being leas sheltered from the north and northwest,
the wind* blowing over the snow-capped mountains often
bring frost and even snow in the winter. On a bright, clear
day, too, there is often an extraordinary difference between
the temperature on the sunny and shady sides of the streets ;
for it will be roasting hot on one side, while on the other
one feels an unpleasant chill. In fact, the Spanish proverb
regarding Madrid is often applicable to the Mexican me-
tropolis, for the wind which on a bright day does not seem
strong enough to blow out a candle on the sunny side of
the street will almost take a man's life in the shade.

The seasons in Mexico are divided into the dry and the
rainy, the former beginning in Novemlier and lasting until
June. In the highlands during this time of the year little
or no rain falls, save a few heavy showers in March or April,
and unless a "norther" is Wowing, the sun shim?* with un-
clouded splendor and the sky is intensely blue. During
the rains, from June to November, showers fall every day
from two to four, and the dry, sun-baked plains and hills.
arid and yellow, then turn to a rich emerald. Thus the
climate of these Mexican highland* is no wanner in summer
than in winter, and travelling, thanks to the absence of
dust, is far more agreeable. It always punles the Mexicans
why tourists visit their country when it is at its climatic
worst.

Around the city lie six shallow lakes, Texcoco, Xochil-
milco, San Cristoval, Xaltocan, Zumpalgo and Chalco.
The first of these is about three miles from the city. In
Astec times the waters of these lakes entirely surrounded
the capita), but since the conquest their shores have gradu-
ally receded. Zumpalgo is twenty-five feet higher than the
city and drains into Texcoco, which caused a serious flood

54 MEXICO

on three occasions, the city being once inundated to the
depth of seven feet, and there being no outlet, the waters
remained in possession for years. To prevent such another
catastrophe, with all its attendant loss of life and property,
the Spaniards, in 1607, began digging a huge drainage
tunnel, which cost the lives of thousands of unfortunate
Indian slaves. Unaccustomed to hard toil, half starved
and overworked, they speedily succumbed to the ill treat-
ment of their Spanish taskmasters. Their labor, after all,
was in vain, for when the tunnel was at last completed, a
large portion of the roof caved in. Many years later it
was decided to turn the tunnel into an open canal, and work
on this continued for over a hundred years, the canal being
finished in 1789. It was known as the Tajo de Nochistongo,
and remained in use until a few years ago, but was never
satisfactory. It was then supplanted by a modern scheme
of drainage carried out by Pearson & Sons, which has proved
a great success not only in draining the overflow of the lakes,
but in carrying off the city sewage. The old Tajo is now
a dry trench, with an average depth of two hundred feet,
from three to seven hundred feet wide at the top and slop-
ing to a few feet in width at the bottom. It is nearly five
miles long, and is partly used as a cutting by the Mexican
Central Railway.

It is curious that Corte*s should have built his city on
the site of the ancient one thus placed in the midst of lakes
and swamps, with the accumulated debris and filth of ages
beneath it. He had plenty of higher ground to choose
from near at hand. It is difficult also to understand why
he did not select a site nearer either of the coasts. Prob-
ably he was tempted by the fact that there was plenty of
building material at hand from the Aztec temples and palaces
which he destroyed. Thus it was that the site of the
modern Mexican capital was most unwisely chosen, and

MEXICO crrr BY NIGUT 65

the evil results of it are still experienced. Even to-day,
a few feet below the surface the earth is soft and swampy,
which hat caused many of the* building* to settle unevenly,
while it has also made the drainage of the city extremely
difficult.

Much has l>een done to mitigate the unfortunate position
of the capital; hut the death-rate is still remarkably high.
particularly in the winter. The average duration of life
is said to he only twenty-nix yearn, which amaxing condition
is largely due to infant mortality. Typhoid and malarial
fevers are prevalent, and pneumonia hikes heavy toll.
Owing to the effect of the run-lied air on the action of the
heart and lung*, diseases of these organ* are rarely curable
on the spot, and whenever pmtsihle patient* are transferred
for treatment to lower altitudes. such as Cueniavaca and
diautla. which have altitudes of alx>ut five thousand feet.

The ho|»el«T«« ignorance of hygiene and the entire alwencc
of sanitary conditions of life among the working ckuwo is
largely res|>onsihle for the heavy death-rate. Their dwell-
ings are mere hovels, their habit* are filthy, their clothes are
ragged, and the foods they eat are ill-cooked and contain
little nourishment. Thus it is no wonder that diseases,
especially those associated with dirt, such as smallpox and
typhus fever, are terribly common; while skin diseases,
scrofula, rheumatism and hone troubles make constant
inroads on the national health. No precautions l>cing
taken to insure the purity of the drinking water, the typhoid
fiend stalks unchecked among the lower quarters of the city.
A report of the American consul states that of three hundred
and fifty-eight deaths occurring during one week in January,
1906, one hundred and twenty-five were from ailments of
the digestive organs, and one hundred and six pulmonary.
Bad food, coupled with sudden chances of temperature, west
the chief causes of this heavy mortality.

56 MEXICO

The population of Mexico City is thoroughly cosmopolitan,
for it contains representatives from nearly every nation of
the earth. The Indians are vastly in the majority; the
half-breeds or meztizos, who call themselves the Mexicans,
ranking next in number, and forming the great middle class.
Then there is the richest class, for the most part of pure
Spanish descent, " whites," as they like to call themselves,
from whose ranks most of the government officials are
derived. These people of the upper class are not all dark;
still a blonde is very rare among them. Most of them are of
olive-brown color, suggesting, in spite of their denial, a
mixture of Indian blood; for in the early days it was not
considered a mesalliance for a Spanish officer of even high
rank to marry an Aztec maiden of the better class, so that
Indian blood is, in fact, very widely diffused through the
Mexican upper classes.

I had a good opportunity to observe the mixed types
of the city's population when I went out on the morning
after my arrival, for in marked contrast with their deserted
appearance the night before the streets were now crowded,
and presented a queer motley of life. Numbers of men
and just a few girls (as the custom of employing female
clerks, etc., is only beginning to be adopted in Mexico's
capital) were hurrying to business. Among these business
men and clerks, dressed much as they would be in an Amer-
ican city, were moving typical Mexican Indians in their
cotton attire, blankets and straw sombreros. Their wo-
men, mostly barefoot, pattered along wrapt in their rebosas.
Sometimes one of the Indians would have his whole family
with him, a row of ragged children, straggling behind in
single file. Filthy little urchins of Indian newsboys, with
lank black hair, brown, smiling faces, and merry black eyes,
in tattered clothing and battered straw sombreros, hawked
their papers at the street corners, shouting lustily, "El

jrxx/co c/rr BT XIOBT 67

lm-par-ci-al " and " El Dia-r-io," giving their r's a peculiar
long trill. Along the street rode a troop of Mexican cav-
alry, swarthy, bronied fellow-, mounted on the trim, ser-
\ ;. , .-iM,- M- xii mi ; -•:.-. iod • :•• -• -1 1:1 !•! M Unif< •'••'• and
Austrian-shaped kepis of glazed leather, their rifles strap|>ed
on their backs. Here and there I (utssed a soldier on foot
droasod in Gentian fashion, a blue unifonn with nil facings,
and a brans -spiked helmet. The scene wan full of color
and vivid contrast*. Klectric street-cars glided by packed
with people, many of them compiled to go to business
in true stra|>- hanging fa>hion. Heil and blue cat* were
abroad, and now and again an automobile dashed p:iM.
its horn tooting merrily ; while the quaint old-world country
life which lay outride the city boundaries was represent «-d
by a chance count r>* wagon drawn by oxen, its wheels
clumsy ili-k" cut in a solid piece from some huge tree trunk.
The weather was not unpleasant, for although the sky was
still overcast, the "norther" was moderating, and the air
was slightly milder.

Passing the new o|**ra-house, which was in course of
erection, and on which a large gang of workmen were
hammering the great steel framework and hoisting stone,
I came to the new Post -office, a magnificent structure of
white stone and marble of platero or mixed Spani-h design. *
It is one of the most beautiful public Imildings in the world,
and certainly does credit to Mexico, though its actual con-
struction b due to an Italian architect and American con- ^
tractors. The interior fittings are very elaborate, fine mar-
bles and bronze being lavishly used. The opera-house is <
also being built by an American firm.

Mexico City might be described as a sort of Americanized
Madrid. The architecture of the older buildings is largely
of the antique Spanish style, with a few modifications
adopted for domestic and climatic reMonfl Many of these

58 MEXICO

old structures are being rebuilt in much the same style as
American business buildings; and the Americanizing pro-
cess is still further evidenced by some large, new office
buildings of American design which have been erected in
recent years. One peculiarity which is shared by many
of the buildings, old and new, is the absence of cellars,
which is due to the marshy nature of the soil. Chimneys
are also scarce, as fireplaces are seldom used.

The streets of the capital are laid out in blocks of the
familiar chess-board pattern, on the same system as that
of American cities. Looking down some of the principal
streets, one sees a picturesque mixture of ancient, flat-roofed
houses of stone or stucco, now used for business purposes,
seldom over three stories in height, usually cream white,
and having the familiar balconies round the first story.
Intermixed with these are modern buildings of various
heights and styles. On a clear day, with a bright blue sky
overhead, the views down some of the older streets are won-
derfully attractive, the long lines of buildings of mixed
architecture and varied shades of color ending in a distant
vista of reddish-tinted mountains which overlook the city.
• Most of the main thoroughfares have an up-to-date and
prosperous appearance, but in the residential districts one
catches glimpses at the crossways of queer, dingy side
streets in which the houses, with their faded, cracked stucco
and rusty ironwork, seem to have been painted a hundred
years back and forgotten ever since. In many of these
old-fashioned streets, houses which were once fashionable
mansions are being gradually transformed into business
buildings or are used as boarding-houses. In one quarter
of the city — quite out of the world — I strolled through
some narrow streets so little frequented that blades of
grass were sprouting up through the cobble-stone paving.
In these streets were some fine old mansions, evidently

MEXICO CtTY BY NIGUT 69

built in a long-pant age and once the homos of wealthy
citizens; but the district had become unfashionable, and
the ancient mansion*, tenanted by a very different clam
of people, had gradually fallen into decay.

All these old house* had huge double doors, some of them
beautifully carved, which ofx»ncd on to the great stone-
paved patio with it.* fountains, flower* and shrubbery, with
wide flights of stone stejw leading to the UJ>|XT galleries.
This is the invariable arrangement in the old Mexican
houses, which are seldom im|>osing on the outside, their
rows of iron-loured windows giving them rather a prison-
like appearance. A f*eculiar feature of them is that the
family usually occupies the upper stories, the ground floor
being used for stables, the carriage room, and the servants'
quarters. Strange to the American eye is the lack of chim-
neys, already referred to, which is due to the fact that char-
coal is generally used in Mexico for cooking and heating.
Wry little coal is found in the count ry. and as most of that
used is imported from abroad, it is rather an expensive lux-
ury All through the city the charcoal sellers can be seen
making their rounds with the cry of "Carix»*in" (charcoal).
Poor families have to content themselves with a few small
pieces — just enough to cook their frugal meals of tortillas
and frijoles.

Most of the business buildings which have l>een recently
erected or reconstructed have rather an American look,
the sign-boards helping to give this impression. I noticed,
for instance, such familiar signs as " I ji Maquina Singer"
- :er S«*v.ing Marhinei. "Maquina l-lscribii K- mingtOO "
(Remington Typewriter), "American Cash Register/'
"Quaker Oats" and " American Klectric Co./' all indica-
tions of the great American invasion. There were also
some other signs of it.

Americana seemed to swarm even- where — in the streets,

60 MEXICO

in stores, in offices, and likewise in the drinking places;
for several American bars have lately been started in the
central district. These are popular meeting places for a
large class of Americans who come down to Mexico in
search of employment or to embark in business in a small
way. In one short street I saw an Americanized barber's
shop, an American grocery store, an American drinking
saloon, an American billiard room, an American boot-
black's stand, and encountered so many Americans that it
was difficult to realize that I was in Mexico City and not in
Chicago or New York. As the result of this invasion, the
principal shops make a great point of catering for Americans,
and display the announcement so often seen abroad,
"English spoken here." Some ultra-patriotic Americans
object to this frequent use of the word "English," and tell
the Mexicans that it should be changed to "United States."
While becoming gradually Americanized, Mexico City is,
however, still cosmopolitan ; for in a short radius one can
see a French costumier's, Spanish wines and groceries, a
German hardware store and agencies of several important
European firms of various nationalities.

Some of the finest buildings in the city are in Calle Cinco
de Mayo (Fifth of May Street) , a sort of Mexican Wall Street,
where there are several new American office buildings —
skyscrapers of ten or more stories — most of them being
the offices of railway companies. One of the best buildings
is occupied by the Mexican Light and Power Company,
a Canadian corporation supplying electric power for light-
ing, running factories, street-cars, etc., from its works at a
great waterfall about forty miles out.

Some of the old buildings used to-day for business pur-
poses date perhaps from the sixteen hundreds; but they
have lost their antique appearance as far as the outside is
concerned. Through their great square doorways, how-

il

MEXICO CITY BT N1QUT 61

ever, can be seen the true old-fashioned patio, with it*
galleries around each story, its central fountain and shrub-
IN rv. Some nf th- -• M],} buildingl \\-Ti- once t!.« maiMOQi
of Spanish grandees, and fine carved front* arc to be seen.
Among the most notable of the older building* is the former
residence of the Kscandon family in the Calle San Fran-
ri-rn. which in now cut up into offices, the first floor being
the ticket office of the Mexican Central Railway.

Next to the Kscandon mansion is the Jockey Club, com-
monly known as the House of Tiles, built by the Count del
Valle in the eighteenth century as a private residence.
Its exterior is entirely covered with |»orrelain tiles of blue
and white, im|x>rted from China at great cost. The en-
trance is massive, and the grand stairway is a su(>erb piece
of work, practically unaltered from the olden days. A
large lamp with an alaliastrr shade, which hangs on the
landing, has a grim association, for it was U>ncath its light
that the Count was assassinated. Throughout the interior
the decoration is largely done in |»rcelain tiles; and lum-
bago, a valuable com|xjsite im|>orted from China, has been
used for the balustrading.

The Jockey Club is the most exclusive of all Mexican
clubs, very few foreign memU*rs being admitted. Mexicans
are not dutiable in the American or Knglish sense, and in-
8tead of being founded in the interests of horse-racing or
social intercourse, the original object of the Jockey Club
WAS gambling. This was conducted to such a scandalous
extent that, it is said, President Dial, in his autocratic
fashion, had a few years back to put a stop to the ruinously
high stakes which were played for. At the present time
the Jockey Club is practically a social club, where baccarat
is played chiefly as an amusement, and the club now justi-
fies its name by owning a race-track near the city, where
•MCllinp are held in the autumn and spring.

62 MEXICO

One of the most interesting streets in the capital is Calle
San Francisco (San Francisco Street), Mexico City's Broad-
way, which is the most Americanized street of all and a
great resort for tourists. The numerous curio stores in
this popular thoroughfare are owned principally by Ameri-
cans, and in their windows are attractive displays of Mexi-
can pottery, feather-work, opals, drawn-work, sarapes
and Mexican trinkets — many of the latter suspiciously
suggestive of Waltham or Meriden, U. S. A. — and of course
quantities of picture postcards. There are also several
American bookstores where American and English maga-
zines and newspapers are sold.

In the upper part of the street the shops are not imposing,
being much as one would see in a small French town ; but
farther down are some really fine establishments, jewelers,
and others, which would do credit to Fifth Avenue. Here,
too, there are several dulcerias (a combination of confec-
tioner's and cafe) where pastry, tea, coffee, and chocolate are
served. At these places, contrary to the usual Mexican
custom, there are girl waitresses, most of them dark-skinned,
Indian-looking "meztizas," very few of whom would take
the first prize in a beauty contest. In this street there are
some of the largest hotels, including the Iturbide, and also
some of the leading restaurants. Over the Gambrinus, a
German restaurant conducted by an enterprising Italian,
the British Club has its rooms, where the travelling Briton,
with proper credentials, can find an agreeable resting-place.
Mexico, Germany, Italy, England — truly a cosmopolis !

In and around San Francisco Street there are a few
department stores of the American type, selling a little
of everything, and conducted on the American system.
These establishments also announce their bargains in true
American style. Plastered over the windows are such
appeals as "Ojo, gran barata, ojo" (Look at the great

jru7co c/rr BY XIGBT »••;;

bargains; just look at them): " Precios muy reducidos"
(Prices greatly reduced); "Gran reduccion" (Great re-
duction). One worthy shopkeeper, with a limited knowl-
edge of English, announced "Gods at the cut price/1
evidently a Mexican variation of the popular American
expression, "Good* at cut prices." Some shops, in a des-
perate attempt to Anglicize themselves and ap)>ear very up
to date, have christened themselves " Fashionable/ ' " Old
England." "High Life" (pronounced Hig /«/), "Five
o'clock," "Royal Club."

In one restaurant an attempt had been made to "Eng-
lish" the bill of fare, with such lamentable results as " Beef-
steati viete" (for sirloin steak) and "Cocteel" (cocktail).
One of the dulcerias, too, which caters for English and
American |>atrunage and serves American "breakfast
foods, " had made a brave attempt to translate some of tin ir
weird names for the ticnefit of customers, the menu card
being a hotch-|x>tch of Spanish and English. The trans-
lator started off with oatmeal, which he transformed into
"avena," thin won! having to do duty in describing various
cereals of a totally different character, "Shredded- wheat
biscuit/' for instance, appearing as "Biscochos de avena."
But when at last he came to such terrifying names as
"Puffed Rice," "Roasted Pearl Grits" and "Syrup Waf-
fles," he had evidently given up the task in do pair, as there
was a long series of melancholy blanks. The translated
terms were not exactly a success. I ordered some "Bis-
cochos de avena, " and the waitress brought me an omelette !

Every shop in the city has a name painted over the door,
and sometimes they are very picturesque. It is all much
like the old English custom of the sign-board, " At the sign
of the Boot," "The Leather Bottle," etc., but the names
are not always so appropriate. Thus one drug store calls
itself the "Gate to Heaven," and a drinking saloon is "The

64 MEXICO

Bait of the Devil"; a hat shop is entitled "El Sombrero
Rojo" (the red hat), a petty tobacconist's is "El Universe,"
while a grocer calls his establishment "El Puerto de New
York," although it appears to have nothing to do with that
city. Other stores were labelled "La Ciudad de Londres"
(City of London), "La Suiza" (the Swiss Woman), etc.
But the custom is gradually dying out, and the common-
place system of putting up the firm's name is coming into
vogue. Mexican shopkeepers are evidently alive to the
sweet uses of advertisement. They stock the latest novel-
ties and lavishly advertise in the newspapers, and with
wall-posters and street-car signs. Even the drop-curtains
of the theatres are adorned with advice to the audience as
to the best drinking saloon, the cheapest tailor's or the
best cure for corns.

Some of the streets have names as grotesque as those
of the stores, which is very bewildering, as there are over
nine hundred streets, and each in its length will rechristen
itself at almost every street corner. San Francisco Street,
for instance, is called First San Francisco, Second San Fran-
cisco and Third San Francisco. Some streets bear the
names of men honored in Mexican history. Others are of an
elaborate religious character, such as "Calle Amor de Dios"
(Love of God Street), "Calle Espiritu Santo" (Holy Ghost
Street), "Sepulchre of the Holy Ghost Street," "Sabbath
Street," etc. Some names are grotesque, such as "Sad
Indian Street," "Pass if you can Street," "Lost Child
Street," "Street of the Wood Owls," "Bridge of the Raven
Street," "Walking Priest Street." Sometimes a street
at a special spot is called "Puente," such as "Puente de
San Francisco," which means that there was originally
a bridge over a canal, but the canal has disappeared ages
ago. As in London, some streets belong to certain indus-
tries. For instance, there is "Coffin-makers' Street,"

JTJTX/CO CITY BY inanr 66

entirely given over to that lugubrious calling. The nar-
rowness of the sidewalks in the busy streets causes many
people to walk in the roadway, and as those thoroughfares
are always thronged during the daytime, the city seems to
have a much larger population than it really ha*.

Shopping and shopkeeping in Mexico City have several
odd features. In the old-fashioned stores, for example,
the salesmen stand in a row behind the counters like a h*le
of soldiers. Smoking is permitted, and the salesman meas-
ures off a yard of cloth or fit* you with new collars between
the puff* of his cigarette. In the smaller establishments
the prices quoted are always higher than you are ex|iected
to pay, for the Mexican shopkeejxr assume* that his cus-
tomer is a bargain-driver. This is also true of the Mexican
stall-kee|)crs in the markets, who always demand about
three times the real price of their wares. Some of the goods
in the stores are surprisingly cheap. I Kit most of them are
dear from the American point of view. This is due to the
high protective tariff, which imixwcs a heavy duty on most
imports. American toilet articles and |>atcnt medicines
are about twice the regular price; furniture, too, is very
expensive, and all clothing, hats, shoes, gloves, etc., are
very dear. Probably the expeaniveness of women's cloth-
ing is the reason for the poverty-stricken ap|>carance of so
many Mexican women of the lower middle clas*.

Wherever you walk, ragged Indian men, women and
boys badger you with the |*»rsistent cry of " lioleto por la
loteria, por maftana, seflor" (Tickets for to-morrow's
lottery, sir). Second-rate shops, too, expose these tickets
for sale. There are all kinds of lotteries, for the Mexicans
are born gamblers, and people of all classes buy the tickets.
Some of the lotteries are conducted by the National and
State governments and bring in large revenue. There are
also private lotteries of various kinds, and even on the

66 MEXICO

backs of the street-car tickets, and on coupons in cigarette
packets are the fateful words entitling you to some kind
of drawing. The prizes generally range from fifty cents to
$50,000, and the tickets vary in price from twenty-five
cents to $25. Men have sometimes founded their fortunes
by winning a lottery prize, and thus procuring the capital
to embark in business. While I was in Mexico, a poor peon
invested all his savings in a ticket and won $10,000, a sum
sufficient to keep him in luxury for the rest of his life.
Enlightened Mexicans regard these lotteries as a great
public evil, and would have them suppressed, but public
opinion is too strongly in their favor. An important con-
cession to public morals has, however, been made in recent
years by the closing of the public gambling houses which
were once common in the city.

One of the worst features of Mexico City is the swarm of
beggars, who constitute a serious nuisance. Filthily dirty
and truly worthy of the title, " Verminous persons, " the lame,
the halt, the blind, and able-bodied rogues and vagrants
are encountered almost everywhere, demanding centavos.
Beggars are common throughout Mexico, but they are seen
at their worst in the capital. The city government has
made an attempt to check this nuisance by compelling each
beggar to take out a license, which, it is true, costs nothing,
but is only issued on proof of the beggar's actual want.
As elsewhere, these hordes of cadgers have undoubtedly
been much encouraged by the public, and especially by
American tourists, whose indiscriminate charity, however
well intended, has only served to increase the begging
nuisance.

CHAPTER IV

MEXICO, PART AND PRESENT

JUST as in order to understand modern Mexico one muni
know something of her past, no in order to fully appreciate
Mexico's fascinating history, which hat* been no graphically
relat4«d in the page* of Prescott, one must stand upon the
historical ground where the drama of the country wan un-
folded, (taxing on the spot where once stood the great
temple of the Mexican gods and the palace of Montezuma.
upon the identical place when* the Spaniards were butchered
by the Aitecs during the " sorrowful night" of their flight
from the city, U|»n the tree beneath which (orte* wept
over this defeat, the stranger cannot help but feel emotion,
however lethargic his intcn*t may previously have been.
Fully as thrilling are the events which followed the War of
Independence in 1K11, when Spanish rule came to an end in
Mexico, the series of revolutions which followed, and the
incidental warn of invasion; for twice during the past cen-
tury the Mexican capital has been occupied by foreign
armies and its streets have resounded, in turn, to the strains
of Yankee Doodle and the Marseillaise. The present is
the child of the past, and the influence of all these strange
events may be traced in greater or leaser measure in the
development of the Mexican people to-day.

Mexico's earliest history is unfortunately shrouded in
profound mystery. The native records, which might have
thrown some light upon it, were ruthlessly destroyed at the

67

68 MEXICO

time of the Spanish conquest, when ignorance and bigotry
were active in stamping out all traces of native culture.

After the conquest, several Spanish chroniclers collected
the oral traditions of the conquered people, while certain
native writers who had learned Spanish wrote what pur-
ported to be a history of their country. This great mass of
material, which has been so fascinatingly condensed and
presented by Prescott in his "Conquest of Mexico/' is a
curious blending of fact and fiction. On one point, how-
ever, all narrations agree, namely, that Mexico is a country
of great antiquity and has been peopled by a succession of
races. Of these early inhabitants almost nothing is known.

Scattered all over Mexico are the ruins of cities, temples
and palaces built in remote periods, and which were prob-
ably in much the same condition ages before the Spaniards
came. The mystery which surrounds their prehistoric
builders is deepened by the strange relics of the past which
are being constantly unearthed. Jade beads which un-
doubtedly came from China are found with stone idols
and statues of marked Egyptian appearance; while inter-
mixed with pyramids which recall those of early Egypt
are ruins of temples and palaces, the architecture of which
bears a singular resemblance to that of Japan. Among
the Indian races of Mexico to-day certain customs exist
which seem to have had their origin in the Far East ; and
there is much resemblance between the religion of the early
inhabitants and that of China and India. These facts
have led many historians to believe that some connection
was actually established between ancient Mexico and the
Orient.

According to native traditions, the whole of Mexico was
originally known as Anahuac, and was inhabited by a suc-
cession of highly cultured races who built the vast temples
and palaces, the ruins of which still exist. The most ad-

MEXICO, PAST AND PRESENT 69

vanccd of then were the Toltccs, who were said to have
come from some unknown land. Prescott represents them
as having arrived in Anahuac in the seventh century;
other authorities believe that they entered the country
fully five thousand years earlier. The Toltecs are said to
have built a wonderful city called Tula, and an attempt
h:i.- IM-.-M made to id< ntif\ thia ; n historic • :'y With ;i litth
village of adobe huts and magnificent ruins not far from
the capital. This is but one of many instances in which
Toltec names of towns and districts still survive.

It was at Tula, according to ancient legends, that Quet-
zalcoatl, a mysterious mewiah, known as the Fair God,
made his ap|>earancc. Me was a white man with a long,
flowing beard who taught the Toltecs the arts of civiliza-
tion, agriculture and war, then sailed away to the west to
return to his own country. After his departure he was
deified by the Toltecs, who represented him in their sculp-
tures as a winged serjK-nt. He had promised to return
after many years, and this pledge was handed down from
generation to generation.

All traditions agree* that the Toltecs were a people of
wonderful culture ; that they were |x*acef ul and temperate,
had reached a high moral plane, and had a form of reli-
gion which was largely nature- worship. Fruit and flowers
were offered in their temples, which were never stained with
human blood as in later Aztec times. Castes existed among
them, and as in the case of some races of the Far East,
they had two written languages, one of which was used
when addressing superiors, the other for inferiors. Their
social classes were divided into priests, warriors, merchants
and tillers of the soil. They also had an elaborate feudal

The empire of the Toltecs was eventually overthrown by
an invasion of fierce tribes who swept down through Mexico

70 MEXICO

from the north, followed in turn by races of higher civiliza-
tion, perhaps akin to the Toltecs, whose language they ap-
pear to have spoken. The Toltecs gradually relinquished
possession of the country and retired southwards, while the
invaders apparently acquired some of the culture of the
people whom they had displaced. Some of them, notably
the Tezcucans, eventually made great progress in the arts
of civilization. Some of these tribes developed a system
of picture-writing resembling somewhat that of the North
American Indians.1

1 An interesting specimen of these picture-writings, which is pre-
served in Mexico, records how the ancestors of the Tarascan Indians
inhabiting the State of Michoacan, came down into Anahuac from
the far north. A reproduction of this ancient record is given on the
opposite page.

According to tradition, the Tarascans were one of nine tribes who
wandered down to Mexico, having emerged from seven caves in the
west, and passing a narrow arm of the sea on wooden rafts or hurdles
made of canoes fastened together. They marched together from this
place, and after many days halted at a large tree, in the trunk of which
an altar was erected to the god Huitzilolvehtli. While encamped
there, the tree suddenly split in the middle. Taking this as a bad
omen, the heads of the tribes consulted the god, who advised them to
take separate roads, which was done, some of the tribes going in one
direction and others in another. The Tarascans eventually took
possession of the country around Lake Patzcuaro.

These scenes are all depicted in the record. The square at the
upper right-hand corner shows the tribes emerging from the caves,
led by their nine high priests ; and intersecting the squares are lines
showing the road they took. Each square depicts some incident in
their long wanderings, a special feature being made of their encamp-
ment at the tree of Huitzilolvehtli. Over the squares are inscriptions
in the Tarascan and Mexican languages, supposed to have been added
by native writers some years after the Spanish conquest. Some of
the words have been translated ; the meaning of others is unknown.
Two colors are used in the drawing — black and red. The latter is
used only for the line which indicates the road followed and for the
species of shirt or jacket worn by the individuals who appear to be
chiefs or priests.

Speaking of these picture-writings, Prescott says: "A Mexican
manuscript looks usually like a collection of pictures, each one form-

MEXICO, PAST AND PRK8KXT 71

Chief among the invading tribes were the Astecs, who are
supposed to hft¥8 come from northern California and made
their way southward. According to Altec Jegeods, they
were told by an oracle that thry should build a great city
on a site that would be indicated by an eagle fxTchcd on the
stem of a cactus or prickly |>car with a scqxwt in his talons.
In 1325, so tradition says, they arrived in the Valley of
Mexico, where the capital now Htands, led by their high
priest, Tenoch, a sort of Aztec Moses, whose name meant
" the Htone cactus." As they approached the lake, the
site of the present city, they beheld a gulden eagle stand-
ing on a prickly pear, holding in Ills talon* a serjieiit.
?ts luul I* vii predicted. In ol>etlicnec to the mgn. the
Altec* nettled at the lake, built their temple and
founded a great city, which they called TenochtitUn, after

ing thenubjcct of a tteparatc Ktudy. The Altec* had variou* emblems
for expressing curb things as fmra their nature could not br directly
represented by the painter. A * tongue .' for example, denoted *pcak-
ing; a 'footprint.' travelling; 'man on the ground.' an earthquake.
These «ymbolii wrre often vrry arbitrary, varying with the caprice
of the writer; am! it required a nice di»crimination to interpret them,
a* a alight change in the form or petition of the figure intimated a very
different meaning. They aluo employed phonetic Ktgmi, though ihe**
were chiefly confined to the namen of penmxti and piacen. Lo«Uyt
the picture* were colored in jpuidy contnurt*. m a« to produce the moat
vivid imprrmion. for even colon *pcak in the Altec hieroglyphioi.

"Clumiry a« it wm«. however, the Attee picture-writing enabled the
people to digcut A complete »y»tem of chrooologjr and to apecif y with
accuracy the date* of the mo»t important evenu in their history.
Serving at a nort of •teoography or collection of note*, thcve writing*
WWB uaed in the college* of the prieubt, where the youth were in-
structed in astronomy, history, mythology, etc. This combination
of the written and oral comprehended what may be called the litera-
ture of the Aiteos.

"The manuscript* were made of different materials, cotton doth
or skin* nicely prepared ; a composition of silk and gum; but for the
•Mat part a kind of paper made from the leaves of the maguey. The
few Mexican manuscript* which are now preserved in Europe have
been reproduced in Ix>rd Kingsborough • magnificent work,
A»**quitie* of Mexico.'"

72 MEXICO

the holy sign and their "priestly guide, the word meaning
"the place of the cactus." The legend of the eagle, the
serpent and the prickly pear is now preserved in the Mexican
arms, and is perpetuated on the coins and the national
banner.

In later years the city was called Mexico after Mextili,
the Aztec God of War, and this name was eventually given
to the entire country.

The ancient city of the Aztecs bore some resemblance
to Venice, some of the houses resting on piles, others being
built on the numerous islands, with canals intersecting the
various parts of the city. Massive stone structures, re-
sembling those of Egypt, were reared, including the great
Teocalli or Temple of the Aztec gods, in pyramidal form,
over a hundred feet high, with one hundred and fourteen
steps, reaching from the ground to the esplanade, broad
enough for thirty horsemen to march abreast. Great
paved causeways led from the city to the surrounding
villages.

The Aztecs, at first, were a fierce, migratory people; but
after their arrival in Mexico they seem to have acquired
the civilization of the tribes by whom they were surrounded,
who had inherited the arts and civilization of the Toltecs
or other races whom they had succeeded. Having made
great advancement in the arts of war, the Aztecs gradually
subjugated the surrounding nations and extended their
sway over a large part of Mexico. The empire of their
great king, Montezuma I, was established about 1460.
Under this monarch their power and prestige greatly in-
creased.

The Aztecs and other races inhabiting Mexico at this
time were largely sun-worshippers, their religion being
distinguished by the most cruel and terrible ceremonies.
Prisoners of war, slaves and other victims were slaughtered

MEXICO, PAST AND PRESENT 78

by thousands in the temples. When the great temple of
Tenochtitlan was dedicated, twenty thousand are said to
have been sacrificed in four days. In the centre of this
temple stood the sacrificial stone now in the Mexican Na-
tional Museum. On this the victim was stretched, when his
body was cut open by the officiating priest, and his heart
being torn out was offered to the sun and the ferocious
God of War. The bodies of the sacrificed were afterwards
devoured by the populace. Thousands of skulls, the result
of this butchery, were formed into a huge pyramid in the
temple, the walls and floor. of which reeked with blood.

Apart from their terrible religious ceremonies, the Aztecs
were a remarkable and cultured race. Even in their rrli-
gion they recogniied a supreme being, and some of thi-ir
prayers which have been handed down are remarkable for
their lofty sentiments and the beauty of their language.1

1 " ID contemplating the religious system of the Astra." say* Prrs-
oott, "one U utruck by thin apparrnt incongruity. a* though »ome
portion of it had emanated from a comparatively rr fined people open
to fen tic influence*, while the re»t breathe* a spirit of unmitigated
ferodty. It naturally nuggtvt* the idea of two diMinrt nourcr*. and
authori*r* the belief that the Alter* had inherited from their pred-
ecessors a milder faith on which was afterward* engrafted their own

::.\ titti <*•>

The Alters recognised the exintencc of a auprrme being, the Lord
of the uni vcme. They addressed Him in their prayers as " the God
by whom we live." "omnipresent." "thai knoweth all thought* and
giveth all gifu," "without whom man is nothing." "the invMbto,
incorporeal, one God of perfect perfection and purity ," " under whose
wing* we find rrpo*e and a mire defence." These miblime attribute*
infer no inadequate conception of the true God. But the idea of unity
wan too simple or too vant for their understanding*, and they sought
relief in a plurality of deities who presided over the element*, the
change* of the *ea*on* and the occupation* of nan. Of theae there
were thirteen principal deities aad more than two hundred inferior.
At the head of theae stood the terrible HuiuilopochUi, the Mexican
Mar*, the patron deity of the nation. Hi* temples were the most
•lately of the public edifice*, and his alum reeked with the blood of
human hecatomb* In every city of the empire. At the dtdlaatiosl of

74 MEXICO

They were learned in astronomy; were good lapidaries
and potters, workers in silver and gold and weavers of
cotton and silk. They cultivated the land thoroughly,
and had developed elaborate systems of irrigation.
Commerce was organized; towns and villages were con-
nected by roadways ; and law and order prevailed. They
had an ingenious method of picture-writing and a regular
system of education for the young.

The doom of the Aztec empire and its neighbors was
sealed in 1519, when Hernando Corte*s landed in Mexico
on his expedition of conquest. He had a fleet of 11 ships
carrying 110 sailors, 16 cavalrymen with their horses,
553 foot-soldiers, 200 Cuban natives, a battery of 10 small
cannon and 4 falconets. To check mutiny among his
Spanish followers and to prevent them from seizing the
ships and retreating, Cortes burned his vessels at Vera
Cruz, then marched inland to the capital of the Aztecs.
Montezuma II then reigned in Tenochtitlan. He had been
informed of Cortes' arrival by spies who had been sent down
to the coast. By relays of runners it was possible for a
message to reach the Aztec capital (265 miles from the coast)
in twelve hours. It is said that fish caught at Vera Cruz
in the evening was served at the dinner of Montezuma
the following day. This would be as fast as the railway
train travels to-day. The Spaniards were astonished
at the rapidity with which news of their movements was
spread. By these runners the Aztec monarchs kept in com-
munication with all parts of their empire.1

the great temple in the capital it is said that seventy thousand cap-
tives were slaughtered at the shrine of this terrible deity.

1 Prescott quotes an author who relates how a North- American In-
dian travelled a hundred miles in twenty-four hours. According to
Plutarch, the Greek who brought the news of the battle of Plataea
covered one hundred and twenty-five miles in a day. Prescott adds :
"The Aztec couriers travelled with such incredible swiftness that

IIKKMNlMi
r»o« «n original portrait in UM Mrxiemo Naik>ul " rrniM

MEXICO, PAST AND PBKSXXT 76

Monteiuma and his priests were convinced from their
official report* that Cortfc was none other than the Fair
God, Quctialcoatl, the child of the sun, whose return had
been promised ages before. They recalled a prediction
that Quctzalcoatl was to overturn the Altec empire.
Montciuma sent the sup|xxed god lavish gift* of gold, and
endeavored to dissuade him from coming to the capital ;
but the gold only whetted the appetite of the Spaniards
for more and hastened their march to the interior.

Cortes was greatly aidetl in his conquest of Mexico by
Marina, a beautiful young slave who had been presented
to him by a Taliascan chief. She wan an Aztec, but having
learned various dialect* when in Tabasco, she was enabled
to communicate indirectly with r«»rte.«. who became in-
fatuated with her beauty and made her his ini-tri--^ She
eventually learned Spanish, and acted as interpreter be-
tween himself and Monteiuma. Marina told the Mexicans
glowing stories of the great in** and splendor of the Span-
iards, and it was undoubtedly through her influence that
the natives went in such great awe of these strange beings
who had come to them from over t he seas.

Soon after his arrival, Cortes invaded the country of the
Tl&tcalans, one of the powerful tnl* -. who had a republican
form of government and were at war with the Aztecs.
After conquering them, Cortes gained them as allies, and
a large force of Tlascalan* accom|>anied him on his march
through the country. He next marched into the kingdom
of Cholula, which he subjugated, destroying all the tempi**
and public buildings, and slaughtering thousands of the
inhabitants. The natives were terror-stricken by the can-

carried, bj relays of runner*, from one to two hun-
dred mile* a day. Frmh fteh WM frequently *enred at Monteiuma '•
table In twenty-four houra from tbe time it had been taken in UM
Gulf of Mexico, over two hundred miles from the capital."

76 MEXICO

non and firearms of the Spaniards, and as they had never
seen a horse, the animal and rider were supposed to be one
being, and were regarded as superhuman. Marching over
the mountains, Cortes pressed on to Tenochtitlan, passed
over the causeways and entered the city on November 8,
1519.

Montezuma came out to meet the conqueror and, under
the influence of superstition, regarding the Spaniards as
gods, the Aztecs made no attempt to prevent their entry.
The Spanish leader took up his residence in the old palace
of Montezuma, where much treasure was discovered and
divided among the invaders.

Early the next year (1520), owing to the cruelty of a
body of CorteV soldiers, who robbed and murdered a num-
ber of Aztec nobles, the people rose in revolt. Montezuma,
who had been seized and held prisoner by the Spaniards,
was killed while attempting to quell the uprising. On the
night of July 1 (afterwards known as "la noche triste" or
" sorrowful night") the Spaniards attempted to secretly
evacuate the city, but were detected and pursued, many
of them were killed or taken prisoners and thousands
of their Tlascalan followers were slaughtered. With the
remnant of his force, Corte*s retreated to Tlascala. In
the meantime, Cuautlahuac, brother of Montezuma, was
crowned king, but dying four months later, was succeeded
by Guatemotzin or Cuauhtemoc, Montezuma's nephew, who
proved to be a brave and able leader. Corte*s, refusing
to acknowledge defeat, recruited his forces at Tlascala, and
won the support of all the tribes who had suffered from
Aztec oppression. From mountain forests he brought
timber sixty miles overland to the shores of Lake Texcoco,
built thirteen brigantines, crossed the lake and once more
appeared before the walls of Tenochtitlan with two hundred
thousand allies.

IffX/CO, PAST AND PRZXXNT 77

The rfqge began on December 3, 1520, and continued
until August 13, 1521, when the garrison wan starved into
submission and the Spaniard* entered the city. Before
it fell, all the Altec treasure was destroyed or concealed.
Guatemotiin was cruelly tortured by having his feet held
over a glowing fire, but he refused to disclose the secret.
The lake and canals were dredged several times, but only
a small jwirt of the treasure was recovered. The unfor-
tunate young monarch was afterwards com[>clled by Cort&
to go with htm on an cx|>edition into Honduras. In the
depths of the jungle Cortes had him hanged to the branch
of a ceiba tree. Thus |>erishcd the last of the Azt<-c kings.

Cortes destroyed the temples in the city and ordered the
erection of churches and convents, the first church — now
the cathedral — being built uj* »n the site of the great temple
of the Alters. The S|>anish priests, with fanatical freniy.
destroyed nearly all the AiUv picture records or codices,
making huge bonfire* of them. Of those which csca|wd
destruction a few are preserved in Kuro|*'an museum*,
notably at the Vatican, and Home are in the Mexican Na-
tional Museum. The Altec him.*** and |xiblic buildings
were gradually torn down and replaced with Sp:ini>h houses,
but the formation of the city was generally observed. In
1634 there was an earthquake, and the waters of the lake
suddenly disap|>cared and the canals gradually dried up.
After the Spanish occupation the native population of the
city decreased until in 1600 there were only about ten
thousand natives and about the same number of Spaniards.
From that time the increase in numbers of Spaniards and
mixed population was very rapid, until at the end of the
next century there was a population of nearly one hundred
and twenty-five thousand.

OorMi became the first governor of Mexico, acquired
vast eetrtee, was created Marquis of the Valley of Oaxaca,

78 MEXICO

and subjugated the rest "of Mexico. Many of his followers
found wives among Aztec women of noble birth.1

Warlike enough before the Spaniards came, the Aztec
masses seem to have been subdued at one blow, and were
soon reduced to the position of mere serfs. The Spanish
priests, too, having gained a great influence over the natives,
taught them to obey those whom God had sent to conquer
their country. Chiefs who would not submit quietly were
won by bribery. Thus by means of force, religion and every
corrupt means that could be employed, the spirit of the

1 The author of "Picturesque Mexico" (pub. 1897) says: "Many
Mexican families of high lineage can point to a family history dating
back to the days of the war against the Moors. Some of them are
wealthy and still possessed of great estates. Descendants of Cortes
still exist, some bearing his name; one of them is living to-day in
Tacubaya.

" There are also several descendants of Aztec monarchs, notably
Sefior Roberto Luis Cuauhtemoc, who is fourteenth in descent from
the emperor, Cuautlahuac, brother of Montezuma II. Other descend-
ants of Cuautlahuac are Don Pedro Patino Itzalinque, who lives in
Holland, and another, Don Pedro Patino Itzalinque, living in the
City of San Luis Potosi, Mexico.

v " There are several well-proved descendants of Aztec monarchs now
living, who draw pensions from the Mexican government. Some
of them reside in Spain and other European countries, and among
them is the Duke of Abrantes, the Marquis del Aguilar Fuerte and
the Conde de Miravalles.

" The direct descendants of Montezuma are living in Salamanca,
Spain, the present head of the family being Sefior Don Augustin
Maldonado y Carbayal Cano Montezuma, Marquis of Castellanos y
Monroy. The Maldonado family is connected by marriage with the
English house of Lancaster and also with the house of Abrantes and
Medinaceli, which are of the first nobility in Spain.

" Among other descendants of Montezuma is Eugenie, ex-empress of
the French. It is therefore apparent that the widow of Napoleon III
was of greater imperial stock than her husband, and brought to the
alliance more dignity than she acquired by it.

" In Mexico City there is a gentleman named Mercado who is a de-
scendant of Montezuma, who has many relics of his illustrious ances-
tors, and is extremely well versed in the history of the Montezuma
race."

JffX/CO, PAST AND PRESENT 79

people was crushed and all romance to Spanish rulo wan
overcome. Then followed a great building jxriod. The
cities throughout Mexico were rebuilt according to Spanish
ideas ; and great churches and cathedral* were erected by
Indian workmen on the grandiose designs of S|»anish archi-
tect.-*.

Thereafter, for three hundred yearn, Mexico was under
the dominion of Spain. I Hiring this time there were five
governors, two councils of three to five members each, and
sixty-two viceroys, the first of whom was ap)>ointcd in l.r>35.
The rule of some of the viceroys was wise and able, and the
country made great progress ; but as in all Spanish colonies,
there was great corruption, oppression and misgovcnimcnt.
All |Hiblic offices wen* held by Spaniard*, while the native*,
even those of SpanL-h descent, received no recognition.

At the beginning of the nineteenth century, when Na-
poleon had overturned thrones and marched an army into
Spain, the spirit of revolution spread to Mexico. The newly
acquired imle|>endeiiec of the I'nta-d State* of North Amer-
ica also served to arouse a <li>ire for freedom among the
Mexicans. Several insurrections started at this |>eriod. but
were speedily stain(>ed out. The first im|x>rtant uprising
took place in September, 1K10, when Miguel Hidalgo, curate
of the village of Dolores in the State of Guanajuato. l>cgan
the firet great movement for independence by ringing the
bell of his church, calling his people together and starting
a war for freedom. liaising a sacred banner bearing the
figure of the Virgin of Guadalupc, the priest organised a
little army of three hundred men, armed with club*, swords,
knives and bows and arrows. At the head of these in-
surgents, he marched to Guanajuato, the people of the
country everywhere flocking to his aid. The Spanish gar-
rison at Guanajuato was defeated and the city captured.
After successful battles at Morelia and ValladoJid, Hidalgo

80 MEXICO

marched towards Mexico City, but when almost within sight
of the capital was defeated, driven back, and his army
dispersed. Hidalgo and his chief officers, Allende, Aldama,
and Jiminez, were betrayed, captured and executed.

After the death of Hidalgo, a desultory struggle against
the Spaniards continued for ten years, and then a new
leader, also a priest, Jose Maria Morelos, who had been a
student under Hidalgo, entered the field. Organizing a
small army, Morelos for two years waged war against the
Spaniards, but was at last defeated by an overwhelming
force, betrayed and captured. He was triSTby^am^ec-
clesiastical tribunal and degraded from the priesthood,
then handed over to the military authorities, by whom he
was condemned to death and shot near the capital in De-
cember, 1815. To-day he ranks next to Hidalgo as one of
the heroes of Mexico.

The next prominent leader in the fight for freedom was
Augustin Iturbide, a Mexican of Spanish descent, and a
former royalist officer, who had been largely responsible
for the defeat of Morelos. Deserting from the Spanish
army, Iturbide gathered all the insurgent leaders around
him and issued a proclamation, pledging the support of his
party to the establishment of the Roman Catholic Church,
to the exclusion of all others ; the independence of Mexico,
with a monarchical government under a Spanish prince;
union and equality of Spaniards and Mexicans. His army
thus became known as the Army of the Three Guarantees.
A number of Spanish regiments deserted and joined Itur-
bide, who in 1821 marched through Mexico, capturing city
after city, and at last occupied the capital. This practically
ended Spanish rule in Mexico, and after a year or two of
negotiations, the independence of the country was at last
recognized by the Spanish government.

After the revolution, Iturbide forced the Mexican Con-

MEXICO, PAST AND PRKSEXT 81

gran to select an emperor, and by threats and bribes man-
aged to get sufficient votes to secure his own election.
He and his wife were crowned in the cathedral a* emperor
and empress of Mexico. Hi* title was Augustin I. He
ruled unwisely, dissolved the Congress in less than four
months, sent several member* to prison and created so
much discord that uprisings were of frequent occurrence.
A successful revolution was led by General Santa Ana;
the empire was overturned, and a republic «>tal>li>h«il, with
Santa Ana as president. Banished from Mexico, Iturbide
was given a | Mansion of ££>,U(JO a year for hi* |>ast services.
He went to England for a time, but unwisely returned
to Mexico in 1824 to lead a new revolution, when he was
arrested, condemned to death and shot. Some of his
descendant* are still living in Mexico and enjoy a good
deal of Mortal distinction.

From 1K24 until 1M<> there were constant revolutions
as the result of disputed elections. In the latter year
troubles anise with the l'nii«il States over Texas, which
had fonnerly belonged to Mexico, but had seceded, and after
a few years as an indc|>etuient n-publir had been annexed
by the Americans. War was forced on Mexico by the
United States, and two American armies were marched into
Mexican territory, one coming down from Texas south-
want, the other landing at Vera Crui. After a series of
battles, in which the Mexicans were defeated and sustained
heavy losses, the Americans entered the capital. A treaty
was then signed which gave the United States a vast ter-
ritory, including New Mexico, Arizona, and California,
the Mexican government receiving fifteen million dollars
compensation. General Grant, who was then a lieutenant
in the United States army, once declared that the war
with Mexico was the most unholy and unjust war em
Wa0ud by a strong nation against a weaker one.

82 MEXICO

Following the American war there were more revolutions,
which continued until 1861. Benito Juarez, a full-blood
Mexican Indian, called the George Washington of Mexico,
then became President. A great struggle between church
and state had been in progress for several years, and it
came to a climax at that time. The church, which had
0 burdened the Mexican people with such a vast number of
priests, friars and nuns, and had acquired most of the wealth
j of the country, clung tenaciously to its privileges and prop-
erty. After adopting a new constitution, declaring for
separation of church and state, the Mexican Congress passed
a law confiscating church property, closing the monasteries
and convents and restricting the power of the church. This
resulted in civil war between the clerical and liberal parties.
Juarez personally commanded the liberal forces, and in
1860 entered the capital. The Liberals, in the meantime,
were excommunicated by the church, and in retaliation the
Papal Delegate and several bishops were ordered by Juarez
to leave Mexico. The country was then in a terrible con-
dition. Bandits committed depredations everywhere, and
many foreigners were robbed and murdered.

In 1861 the Mexican Congress passed a law suspending
payment of interest on the bonds of the Republic held by
foreigners. This gave the European powers an excuse
for intervention. The French government claimed $600,000
damages suffered by French subjects during the civil war.
No doubt damage had been suffered; but many of the
claims were ludicrous, as, for example, one item of $60,000,
the value of pies alleged to have been stolen from a French
cook by the Mexican soldiers. In 1862, a combined British,
French and Spanish fleet arrived at Vera Cruz, and an allied
force was landed for the purpose of enforcing payment of
Mexican obligations. President Juarez met the represent-
atives of the powers at Orizaba, and signed a treaty ac-

THE EMPEROR MAXIMILIAN.

Mexico's ill-fated ruler, shot at Queretaro in 1867.

JTU7CO, PAST AND PRKSEXT K',

knowlcdging the claims and promising payment. Great
Britain and Spain then withdrew their forces. Encouraged
by the clerical party, the French remained ; and Napoleon
III, who was anxious to increase hi* prestige by establishing
a monarchy in the Western Hemisphere, readily entered
into a scheme of conquest.

Four thousand French troop* eventually landed in Mexico
and advanced to Puebla, where they were defeated, on the
5th of May, 1H62, by the Mexican troojjs under General
Zaragoia. This date, HO im(Kirtant in Mexican history, is
annually set aside for national celebration, and nearly
every city has a street named Cinco de Mayo (/ith of May).
On the 17th of May, however, Puebla was captured by the
French forces. On June 9 they entered Mexico City.
A so-called Assembly of Notables was then railed together
and a declaration made that Mexico should be governed
by a constitutional monarch and that a Catholic prince
should be seJected. At the suggestion of the French rep-
resentatives, the throne was offered to Maximilian, Arch-
duke of Austria, who was also a representative of the ruling
house of Spain Maximilian accepted the throne on con-
dition that he should be elected by popular vote, and that
the Emperor Napoleon should give him military aid as
long as it was necessary. He arrived in Mexico City
June 12, isr»!. with his wife Carlotta, daughter of Leopold
I, King of the Belgians.

After his accession, Maximilian aroused the opposition
of the clerical |»arty by enforcing the laws of church reform.
Juarci,in the meantime, had crossed the border into Texas,
and from there continued to direct the movement for
driving out Maximilian and the French. Maximilian, at
tin- tmir. uml.-r th«- ii.rln. DSC «•{ M.iM. J BtJMUM :iii'l "tl.« r
• •\il counsellors, made a fatal mistake. He issued a decree
declaring the civil war at an end, and that all persons in

84 MEXICO

arms would be treated as bandits and shot when captured.
The execution of the Liberal generals, Arteago, Salazar,
Villagomez and Felix Diaz followed. At this time the
Civil War in the United States was drawing to a close, and
the American government, regarding the French aggression
in Mexico as a serious breach of the Monroe doctrine, in-
formed Napoleon III that the United States would not
tolerate the establishment of a monarchy on the western
continent. On receipt of this note, Napoleon abandoned
Maximilian and recalled the French forces in November,
1866. The collapse of the empire speedily followed. As
soon as the French left, President Juarez entered Mexico,
gathered his forces and marched southward. He defeated
Maximilian's general, Miramon, who retreated toQueretaro,
where he was joined by the emperor. In the meantime,
General Porfirio Diaz, who commanded the republican
forces in the south, had captured Puebla, defeated Maxi-
milian's troops in several battles and had commenced
the siege of Mexico City. After a siege of several weeks,
Juarez captured Queretaro. Maximilian and his generals,
Miramon and Mejia, were tried by court-martial on charges
of filibustering, of treason and of issuing the decree of
October 3, 1865, under which the Liberal generals had been
executed. Senor Riva Palacio, the emperor's counsel,
and other distinguished lawyers, defended Maximilian, but
without success. The emperor and the two generals were
found guilty and sentenced to death.

After the trial, Sefior Riva Palacio went to the neighbor-
ing city of San Luis Potosi to plead with President Juarez
for a modification of the sentence, and Princess Salm Salm
rode across the country one hundred and twenty miles on
the same errand. Although personally inclined to show
mercy, Juarez considered it necessary to strike a decisive
blow for the maintenance of the Republic. A protest from

JfiJT/CO, PAST AND PRESENT 85

the United States government was received, but that was
of no avail. Maximilian Hent in an appeal on behalf of his
companion*, but thi* met with no better success. On the
morning of June 19, 1867f the emperor and hi* two general*
were shot on the hill outride Queretaro. Carlotta, his un-
fortunate consort, who wan in Kurope at the time, had en-
deavored in vain to get the Kmperor Napoleon to send
another army to rescue her husband, and had also pleaded
with the FO|M> without succeiw. Grieving over Maximilian's
death eventually shattered her mind. The story is one of
the most pitiful in modern hi.-tnry .

A few day* after Maximilian'* execution, General Dial
captured Mexico City, and President Juarez retunied to
the capital after an ai**rnc«» of five year* to ni-*t:iMi-h his
government. He died in 1K72. and after a brirf revolution
in 1870 General l>ia* l>erame President. H<« served almost
continuously until 1910, when a successful revolution
caused hi* retirement and the accession of I>on Francisco
M:i«l«Tn. Di*order prevailed throughout Mexico during
President Madero'* brief a<lmini>tnition. which came to an
end in February, 1913, as the s^juel to a revolution headed
by General Felix I>ias( a nephew of the former President.
A few day* after hi* definition from office Soft or Madero
was assassinated while lieing conveyed from the National
Palace to the State Penitentiary. In the meantime, General
Huerta, a distinguished officer of the regular army, had
formed a provisional government with himself a* President,
hi* retention of the office being continued by Congress
pending a presidential election to be held in 1914.

CHAPTER V

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL

EVERY capital has its great central point from which
radiates the life of the city — in London, for example, the
Bank of England, in Paris the Opera House, and in Berlin
the Unter den Linden. In Mexico City everything starts
from the Plaza Mayor or main plaza, a great public space
larger than the Capitol square in Washington, which is the
true heart of the city. Here it was that the city first began,
from it start some of the principal streets, and it is the
oldest and in many respects the most interesting part of
the Mexican capital. To some extent it resembles the Isle
de la Cite* in Paris ; for in Aztec times it was entirely sur-
rounded by water, and here stood the temples and palaces
which the Spaniards destroyed, replacing them with the
cathedral and various public buildings. In the great plaza
the life of the city had its centre in early Spanish times,
the market and the principal shops were here, and it was the
public promenade and place of recreation. To-day, with
its quaint, time-worn buildings and its memories of the
past, it has suffered a modern invasion in the shape of the
street-cars which start from it. I felt a curious impression
of this juxtaposition of the modern and the mediaeval as
I stood beneath the giant walls of the sixteenth-century
cathedral and listened to the persistent clanging of the
street-car gongs.

For there is one feature which dominates the plaza and
vividly recalls the days when Spain was a mighty world-

86

TUX SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 87

empire and Queen Eiiiabeth ruled the destinies of England.
That feature is the great cathedral built on the site of the
wonderful teocalli or temple, dedicated to Huitxilopochtli,
the Axtec War-god and patron deity of the ancient city.
Here in the temple centre stood the famous Stone of Sacri-
fice, upon which tens of thousands of human victims were
slaughtered, their breasts sliced o|N»n with obsidian knives,
their hearts torn out and burned in the holy of holies in
honor of the terrible deity. Close at hand were the palaces
of the Eiiifxror Montezuma.

It was typical of the splendid arrogance of the Catholic
conquerors that Cortes should have seized u|*m the theatri-
cal idea of building his great stone :t|N>thi«»M> of his faith
on a site reeking with rnemorit* of pagan foulness. It was
in 1573. in the reign of Philip II, that the first stone of the
great church was laid. The soil was of such a marshy
nature that the builders hnd great difficulties with which to
contend. These* indeed were so enormous that after nearly
fifty years the walls had only lx««*n built twenty feet above ,
the ground. Philip III, on hearing of the slnwnivw of the j
work initiated by his father, had new plans drawn up and I
lavishly sulxtidixed the undertaking.

The principal sacristy was finished in Hi23; the vaults
in the middle nave were complete alxiut the middle of the
seventeenth century, and in 1»H»7 the interior was so far
advanced that an inaugural service was |xissiblc. The
choir, however, was not complete till 1730. and thus the
great church had Ixvn building nearly two centuries. The
whole cost was nearly three million dollars; but that rep-
resents only a fraction of the money lavished on the
greatest Catholic fane in the New World, if those who
tdfffrWlad been (mid fair wages and the material had not
been commandeered.

From north to south the vast edifice is more than four

88 MEXICO

hundred feet long, the interior measuring three hundred and
eighty-seven feet, while the height from floor to roof is
one hundred and seventy-nine feet. The towers are two
hundred and forty feet high. The material used is a lime-
stone of a dark cream tint. Over the whole is a superb
dome. The architecture in the main is Gothic, with a
lavish use of Doric and Corinthian pilasters. But it is in
the interior of the cathedral that one realizes the amount
of money which has been lavished on the adornment of the
great church. The ornamentation of the high altar is said
to be worth the almost fabulous sum of a million and a half
of dollars. The lamp hanging before the sanctuary is
said to have cost $80,000, while the tabernacle of massive
silver is valued at over $150,000. The whole place gives
one an impression of glittering gold and gems, a treasure-
house of an ecclesiastical Crcesus.

There are fourteen chapels in the cathedral, each pro-
fusely decorated and gilded. Under the altar of one of
them are interred the heads of the patriots Hidalgo, Allende,
Aldama and Jiminez, who led the first revolution against
Spanish rule and were executed at Guanajuato. After
the Spaniards had been finally driven from Mexico, the
heads were brought in great state and pomp to the cathe-
dral and buried where they rest to-day. In another chapel
lie the remains of Augustin Iturbide, the first emperor of
Mexico, known as The Liberator. It is also the tomb of
several Spanish viceroys, as also of Gregorio Lopez, the
Mexican "Man with the Iron Mask/7 alleged to have been
a son of Philip II of Spain.

The choir is surrounded with a high railing of richly
carved woods, and is connected with the nave by a passage-
way enclosed with balustrading of rich tumbago. In this
instance the composite consists of a mixture of gold, silver
and copper, and is so valuable that the offer of an American

TDM SIGHTS OF TBf CAPITAL 89

to replace the railing with one of solid silver was indignantly
refused.

It would seem that Catholic fervor in Mexico is on the
decline, for save at the time of the services the devout of
the upper classes are rardy seen in the cathedral, the
whole building being given over to the poor. Walking
through the iinlrn, one see* the blanketed Indians kneeling,
sombrero in hand, at the id tars, or on the worn stones of
the <• ha IN -Is. often the Indian women at their sides. Here
and there a whole Indian family can be seen in their tattered,
flimsy clothing, making a touching picture an they remain
in reverent contemplation of the figure of the Virgin or
saint whoae protection they invoke. As in other I-atin
countries, women form the bulk of the wornhipfjere at all the
services. Men of the wealthier clam scarcely ever attend.
In the early morning the women go to marat d rowed in black,
with the graceful lace mantilla generally drafted over the
head, half exposing the olive-brown faces and bright spar-
kling eyes of the scftorila*.

On the cast side of the plaza, ami facing the cathedral,
is the National Palace. This i* built on the rite of Monte-
zuma's second and greater |ial:irr. win-re (ortea built for
himself a mansion. In l.WJ thi* latter building wait Hold
by his deHccndanta to the Spanish government , and for more
than a hundred years it wan the Viceregal residence, until
in 1092 it was destroyed in a great riot. The present
building was begun in the same year and finished in 1099.
It is the official residence of the President, and contains
the state apartments, the offices of some of the chief
ministries, the Senate Chamber, the Record Office and
the Treasury.

The palace is a long, flat-roofed, gray stone, two-storied
building in Spanish style, and while architecturally not
remarkable, has a quaint, old-world pictureaqueoeas all

90 MEXICO

its own; and it does "not take a great stretch of the
imagination to picture the eighteenth-century Spanish
caballeros riding in and out of the courtyard. It has a
frontage of six hundred and seventy-five feet, extends
backwards proportionately and forms a large square.
Outside the main entrance, dark-skinned Mexican sentries,
with their blue uniforms and glazed leather kepis, march
up and down with fixed bayonets on their rifles, and a group
of officers and soldiers off duty can generally be seen. All
this is in striking contrast for the visitor who comes direct
from the United States, where soldiers are never stationed
at public buildings, and even the White House at Washing-
ton is guarded by only a few policemen.

The presidential apartments are magnificently furnished
and decorated. Quite regal in its measurements is the
Hall of Ambassadors, stretching the entire length of the
palace, and lit by large windows looking out upon the
cathedral. Here the President formally welcomes state
visitors and receives the accredited representatives of
foreign governments on their arrival to take their official
posts. At these ceremonies the foreign ministers are pre-
sented to the President by an official entitled the Introducer
of Ambassadors. At the south end of the chamber is a
dais set with chairs in a half circle, where the President
sits surrounded by his cabinet ministers. The walls are
hung with portraits, including those of George Washington,
Benito Juarez, Iturbide, the generals Guerrero and Morelos,
and President Diaz.

Over the main entrance to the Palace is hung the Liberty
Bell of Mexico, which was rung by Father Hidalgo in 1810
in the village of Dolores, to call the people to arms in the
first struggle for independence. This relic was brought to
the capital in 1896, and on the night of the fifteenth of
September each year is rung with great ceremony by the

TIIK \IKXH \\ NATION U. I' \LAiK.

r%ht by TW Iwtr.41 !%•<• « '«.

PYRAMID OK I Hi MOON.

-• ,-.••.-

7//JT SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 91

President of Mexico, in the presence of an immense gather-
ing. Just above the Liberty Hell is a clock which was exiled
from the church of a small S(>anish town because it was
supposed to be bewitched, having struck the hours out of
order. Although the National Palace is the President's
official residence, he does not live there, but in a compara-
tively small house in the Cadena. a thoroughfare running
off the Plaza, whence he comes, often on horseback, and
always without any escort, to his daily work.

The National Museum has a wing of the Palace devoted
to it. Here then* is a splendid collection of Mexican antiq-
uities, idols from temple*, ornaments from palao-s. jewels,
anus, shields and utensils of the Toilers and Aztecs, with
Nunr few of the Aztec picture-writings, which wen* saved
from the bigotry of the monks. Then* an* also jmrt raits
of the gn»at characters in Mexico's history since the Con-
quest. Among the most intending exhibits are the arms
and armor of tin* early S|ianish invaders, some of their
standards, a fine |«»rtr:ul of ( ortes, oil paintings (Hirt raying
the liaptism of Mexican Indians by the first missionaries,
and a collection of the wea|«»ns. head-dn?«<e£ and costumes
of the Aztec warrit>m. Near the entrance is the great
Stone of Sacrifice which formed the entire altar of the Tem-
ple of the Sun, which stood but a few feet from the site of
the museum. It is circular, very elaU>rat«-ly carved, the
figures on the rim showing the Azter priests dragging their
victims by the hair to the scene of sacrifice to be offered to
the Sun-god. At the Conquest the stone was buried by
Spanish priests and was not rediscovered until 1791, when
some drainage excavations were being made near the
cathedral. Near by is a grim and hideous relic of the terrible
Huitzilopochtli, the Aztec War-god, an elaborately carved
block of stone representing the ferocious face of the deity,
with snakes' teeth and a fringe of snakes' heads depending

92 MEXICO

as a breast ornament. At the base of the figure, the feet
are in the form of a slab, upon which it is believed the still
palpitating hearts of the slaughtered victims were placed
as an offering.

, In the same gallery is the Aztec Calendar Stone, a stone
j circle of twelve feet in diameter and weighing 53,790 pounds.
\ This huge monolith, which was originally embedded in the
walls of the great Temple, is elaborately carved with what
appears to be calendar divisions. Many efforts have been
made to decipher the carvings. Perhaps one of the most
interesting is that of Mr. W. W. Blake of Mexico City, who
sees in the second large circle four parallelograms indicat-
ing, in Aztec mythology, that the sun had died four times.
These epochs or ages were, Mr. Blake thinks, the Age of
Air, the Age of Water, the Age of Fire and the Age of
Earth, and he thus interprets them: the Age of Air was
the glacial epoch, representing the Aztec traditions of the
ice lands to the north, from which their forefathers came;
the Age of Water was the time of the submersion of the
continent of Atlantis; the Age of Fire was the period
marked by the eruptions of the volcanoes and accompany-
ing earthquakes. Finally is the Age of the Earth, which
began 4431 years before Christ and ended 1312 A.D. This
Calendar Stone, like the Stone of Sacrifice, was buried in
the Plaza, and was only unearthed in 1790. According
to tradition, both of them were quarried near Coyoacan in
1478, over five thousand men being engaged in the work;
they were then dragged over causeways on wooden rollers,
crossing the canals on specially constructed bridges, and
were thus transported to the great temple. It is said
that this event was celebrated by the sacrifice of over seven
hundred human beings.

In the museum are many large and terrible Aztec idols
from all parts of Mexico, some of them having a very marked

77/JT SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 98

likeness to Egyptian figures. This is especially true of the
so-called figure of Chac-Mol, which was found by Dr. Le
Plongeon at Chichen-Itsa in Yucatan, and is supposed to
represent the God of Fire. This figure is notable as having
an almost perfect Egyptian head-dress. A statue of the
Goddess of Water, excavated at Teotihuacan, near the
Pyramids of the Sun and Moon, is more than eleven feet
high and five feet wide, and weighs forty thousand pounds.
The feathered serpent, a mythic figure of great prominence
in Altec can-ings, is found all over Mexico. It is called
QucUalcoatl, and represent* the Mexican myth of a white
man with a long flowing beard, who taught the people
religion and civilization, a religion which the early Spanish
are said to have found very much like Christianity. Ac-
cording to a Catholic legend, this mysterious teacher was
one of the apostle*, |N«*ibly St. Thomas. The Mexican
government now claims all Altec relics and su|>erinten<U
all excavations, jealously guarding the sites of the ancient
cities.

One of the gallcrie* is devoted to pictures, chiefly the
portraits of the Spanish viceroys of Mexico from the time
of the Conquest to the declaration of imlejH'iulrnce. They
are poor specimens of art for the most part; but they
portray a picturcuque lot of rulers and give one a very fair
idea of those in whose hands the fate of so many human
beings once rested. In another gallery are housed the
state carriages of the ill-fated Emperor Maximilian and
the Empress Carlotta, gorgeously decorated with gold and
silver and emblaioned with the imperial arms. The
stiver-mounted harness is also there, and, in a burst of
very unrepublican emperor-worship, is hung on the wall
above a picture of a gorgeous footman, inscribed " State
footman of the Emperor Maximilian." It is all very
pathetic, and the pathos is deepened by the object-lesson

94 MEXICO

in democratic simplicity which is given in the other corner
of the room. There, in its cracked, old-fashioned, plain
black leather, stands the carriage used by President Juarez,
who overturned the empire and authorized the execution
of Maximilian.

Strange to say, most of the visitors to the museum are
Indians of the working class, who can be seen walking
through the galleries, gazing with solemn looks at the relics
of the Aztecs, and discussing, in their own language, the
achievements of their ancestors. The policemen on duty
there, who are also of Indian descent, are very vigilant in en-
forcing the official regulations, as I found to my astonish-
ment one morning. I had gone to the museum at rather
an early hour, when the place was almost deserted, and
was strolling through one of the long galleries, when I
heard a stern voice far in the rear, commanding me to halt.
I turned and saw a policeman who was beckoning to me
and saying, "Seiior, senor, regrese " (Come back, sir). Re-
turning to the entrance door where he was stationed, I
asked him what he wanted, whereupon he simply pointed
to a placard inscribed, "A la dereche" (Keep to the right) ;
and it then dawned on me that I had actually been keeping
to the left. The rule, of course, was intended for enforce-
ment only when the museum was crowded ; but the worthy
policeman had evidently been told to keep people to the
right, and he was determined to do it whether there was
one visitor or ten thousand. Apologizing to him for my
disgraceful violation of the rules, I resumed my walk, taking
great care to keep to the right.

On the west side of the Plaza is the National Pawn-shop
or Monte de Piedad, which was founded as a charity, but
which is now managed in much the same way as the French
Montes de Pie*te*. Similar establishments exist in most
of the larger Mexican cities, enabling the poor to obtain

TIU \/ii« • vl » M.U: M.-NK

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 95

loans on pledges at a very reasonable rate of interest, and
thus rescuing them from the merciless usurers. The Monte
opens every afternoon for the sale of unredeemed pledges.
Tourists are said to pick up great bargains in jewellery, his-
torical relics and curios of all sorts. While I was in the
city, an American bought from a curio dealer what was
alleged to be the ivory and gold-mounted cigar case of the
Emperor Maximilian, and ten ivory napkin-rings bearing
the imperial arms. These were sold for ten dollars. If
they were genuine, it is possible that they had come into the
bric-a-brac dealer's hands at one of the daily sales at the
Monte de Piedad. No Mexican would have bought them,
as they are all very superstitious, and believe that any-
thing that belonged to Maximilian brings bad luck.

Not far from the National Palace is the so-called Volador
or Thieves' Market, where dishonestly acquired goods of
every description are offered for sale by a picturesque
crowd of ragged vendors. Most of the things offered are
believed to have been stolen, and prices rule low, great
bargains being sometimes obtainable. Valuable books,
old gold and silverware, relics of all kinds, even old paint-
ings, are displayed for sale. Some years ago a Murillo is
said to have been bought here for five dollars. A prettier
sight is the Flower Market, which is also close to the cathe-
dral, and in the morning presents a beautiful scene, with
its wealth of carnations, violets and roses. The flowers
are delightfully cheap, and mammoth bunches of double
violets — all you can carry — can be had for fifty cents,
and heaps of roses, even in midwinter.

A picturesque row of buildings on one side of the Plaza
have their lower stories in the form of arcades or portales,
which, as already noted, form a distinctive feature of the
plazas in all Mexican towns. Supported by columns, they
extend over the sidewalk and furnish a grateful shade on

96 MEXICO

a hot day. Under the portales there are some of the most
attractive stores in the city, and they are also a refuge for
various itinerant vendors who sell dulces, fruit, trinkets
and other small wares. The portales and the two-storied
buildings connected with them have a very old look, and
date perhaps from the sixteen hundreds.

I imagine that the Plaza has altered very little during
the past two hundred years, and to me it seemed to be
the most romantic spot in the capital. Spanish officers in
doublet and hose and feathered bonnet must once have
strolled about there discussing the latest news, perhaps
cursing that English terror of the seas, Francis Drake,
whose capture of treasure-laden galleons so often caused
consternation in Mexico. The very stones that one treads
on to-day have probably echoed to the feet of the victims
of the Inquisition, as they marched in sad procession from
their place of trial (the old Inquisition building erected in
1571, close to the Plaza, and now used as a medical in-
stitution) to the bonfires of the auto-da-fe in the Alameda.
Threading their pompous way beneath the shadow of the
great cathedral, the Spanish viceroys, with silken canopies
of state held above them by Indian slaves, have ridden
on marvellously caparisoned steeds, surrounded by regal
grandeur, into the old palace courtyard.

A large building in the Plaza is the Mexican equivalent
of an American city hall, as it is the official residence of the
city's administrators, and it also contains the offices of the
principal city departments. The government of Mexico
City, it may be added, differs entirely from that of other
Mexican cities, the capital and various small towns sur-
rounding it being situated in what is called the Federal
District, corresponding to our own District of Columbia.
It is regarded as neutral ground, as the National Congress
is held in the capital ; and on this account the government

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 97

of the district is in the hands of the federal authorities.
The government is represented by three officials appointed
by the President — the Governor (who is practically the
mayor), the President of the Superior Board of Health, and
the Director of Public Works. Their power is supreme, and
all departments are under their control. The system has
worked wonderfully well, and it is perhaps due to the direc-
tion of affairs being left entirely to these three officials
that public improvements are carried out so quickly in
Mexico City. Even the most casual observer cannot fail
to be impressed by the fact that the capital is remarkably
well governed.

In the centre of the Plaza is a small park called the
Zocalo, planted with trees and flowers, where a regimental
band plays several times a week. From the Zocalo the
electric cars run to all parts of the city and to the principal
suburbs. It is strange to see these prosaic American cars
labelled with such queer Aztec names as Coyoacan, Tlapan,
Tlalnepantla, Atzacapotzalco, all suburban places.

Mexican street-cars, by the way, are divided into first
and second class, but they run singly, the first class being
painted buff, the second class green. The latter are always
crowded with evil-smelling peons.

First-class fares are from three to ten cents, according
to the distance travelled. The second class are a few cen-
tavos cheaper. Private cars, well fitted up, can be hired
for parties, and freight-cars and cattle trucks are also
run. One afternoon the President and his cabinet went
out to some suburban festival in a sumptuous special car.

Except in the cases of the wealthy, the street-cars are
always used for funerals, a special car painted black being
employed. Every day, and almost every hour of the day,
you can see the funeral cars running out to the suburban
cemeteries. The hearse-car, elaborately draped with black

98 MEXICO

cloth, and surmounted by plumes and a cross, with a raised
dais for the coffin, goes first ; and then come two ordinary
cars of solemn black for the mourners. This funeral train
is only for the well-to-do. For the poor there is a car
completely closed, with doors at the back, and fitted with
shelves upon which the coffins are stacked. Attached to
this is a second-class car, painted black, and inscribed
"Funebre," in which relatives and friends ride to the
cemetery.

Mexico City abounds in spots which, like the Plaza, have
romantic or historical associations. For instance, a street
corner called Salte de Alvarado marks the place where
Alvarado, the lieutenant of Corte*s, leaped across the canal,
using his lance as a leaping-pole, when escaping from the
Aztecs on the night of the flight from the city. Close to
the Zocalo is the site of the house in which was established
the first printing-press of the New World, in 1535, more
than a century before one was employed in the English
colonies. Prior to 1550, a dozen books or so, chiefly re-
ligious, had been printed. The first, bearing date 1536,
was called " Escala espiritual para llegar al Cielo, Traducido
del Latin en Castellano por el Venerable Padre Fr. Ivan
de la Madelina, Religioso Dominico, 1536 " (The Spiritual
Ladder for Reaching Heaven, Translated from Latin
into Spanish by Father Ivan, Dominican). It was here
that the first music in the New World was printed in the old
illuminated style, as also was the first wood-engraving cut.
During the seventeenth century, Mexico City was regarded
as a great seat of learning; but even before the spacious
times of Queen Elizabeth, literature had its beginnings in
the Mexican capital.

In Felipe de Jesus Street there is still standing the house
in which the first Mexican saint, San Felipe, was born in
1572. His father was a Spanish merchant, who carried on

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 99

extensive trade between Mexico and the Philippine Islands
in slow-sailing galleons. After a wild youth, Felipe was
converted, became a Franciscan monk, and for many
years was a missionary, until at last he found a martyr's
death in Japan. A generation later he was canonized, and
became the patron saint of Mexico City. In the patio
of the house there is an old fig tree to which a beautiful
tradition attaches. Felipe, despite his wild youth, used
to tell his mother that he would die a saint. She said that
would come to pass when the fig tree in the garden bore
figs. The fig tree was then dry and barren. Years after-
wards, when Felipe won a martyr's crown, the fig tree be-
came, in a moment, green and healthy, and was loaded with
luscious fruit, though it was not the bearing season.

At different points in the city are the ruins of the aque-
duct of brick and stone which was completed in 1779. It
brought water to the city from a spring at Chapultepec,
and ended at a beautiful fountain called el Salto de Agua,
still preserved. The water supply of the capital is now
so up-to-date that it has almost done away with the neces-
sity for one of the most picturesque street types, namely, the
aguadores or water-carriers, bending under the weight of
huge earthen pots in which they carried the precious liquid
from door to door.

If Mexico City had no other claim to be ranked among
the finest cities of the world, she could complacently base
her pretensions upon the Paseo de la Reforma, the great
drive which leads from the end of the Avenida Juarez for
two and a half miles to the park and castle of Chapultepec.
It is safe to say that there is no finer thoroughfare than
this in the world. Fringed by a double avenue of trees,
chiefly eucalyptus, surrounded by trim lawns and flower
beds and lined with really fine houses, standing in beauti-
ful grounds, the homes of Mexico's wealthiest families,

100 MEXICO

the whole arrangement, with a double roadway, recalls the
beauties of the Champs Elyse'es. At intervals the Paseo
widens into circles, which are called glorietas, and in several
of these there are some really fine statues. The bronze
equestrian statue of Charles IV, which centres the glori-
eta at the city end of the Paseo, was set up in 1803, and
is a very striking work of art. Its sculptor was Manuel
Telsa, a Spaniard. In another glorieta is the Columbus
statue by Cordier, a fine piece of carving. On the base are
represented historical scenes, beautifully sculptured, and
the whole is surmounted by a figure of Columbus drawing
aside the veil which hides the New World.

But the most remarkable monument is that by Fran-
cisco Jiminez, which honors the memory of Cuauhtemoc
or Guatemotzin, the nephew of Montezuma, the last Aztec
king. The Indians still revere his memory, and annually
honor it by a festival, on which occasion the monument is
decorated with wreaths and flowers. Scenes from the life
of the prince, and his torture by Cortes, are worked in bronze
on the four sides of the base; on the plinth stands an ideal
statue of the heroic warrior in war costume, a spear poised
in his hand. It is worth noticing that while this worthy
memorial has a place of honor in the city which has suc-
ceeded the Aztec Tenochtitlan, there is not among the public
monuments even a bust of the cruel and bigoted Spaniard,
torturer and murderer of the brave Aztec prince.
.*. It was during the empire of Maximilian that the Paseo
was laid out, and it at once became the fashionable drive
of the capital. Here, in the afternoons, but more particu-
larly on Sundays and feast-days, there is a wonderful dis-
play of carriages and horses. The procession passes up one
side and down the other, while police duties in directing
traffic are performed by the picturesque Republican Guard,
mounted on the wiry Mexican ponies, and armed to the

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 101

teeth with sword, Winchester rifle and revolver. But there
is no need for this heavy armament, for the whole scene
is one of gayety and good temper. The people have come
out to enjoy themselves, and very happily and brightly they
do so.

At the end of the Paseo, occupying much the same
position as the Arc de Triomphe does in the Champs Elysees,
is the Castle of Chapultepec. It stands on a high bluff of
volcanic origin, on the scarred face of which are carved
some ancient hieroglyphics. In Aztec, Chapultepec means
"The Hill of the Grasshopper," and it was on the hill that
Montezuma had his summer palace. The castle, which
architecturally hardly comes up to its name, having a
striking resemblance to some huge sanitarium, is a vast,
rambling building which was designed as a viceregal resi-
dence and completed in 1785. It has, however, been much
enlarged and altered since that date. Maximilian was
responsible for the decoration of the castle, and for the
planning out of the beautiful gardens in which it stands.
With the exception of two chairs, which are traditionally
believed to have been used by Cortes, all the old furniture
has disappeared, and there is no trace of the short-lived
empire, everything bearing the monogram, "R. M." (Re-
publica Mexicana). The President resides at the castle
for only a month or two in the summer, and occupies one
of the wings, which has been specially furnished for him
and his family. Sometimes official visitors of great dis-
tinction are entertained there and allotted apartments
during their stay in the city.

From the castle terrace, which looks down upon the
sweep of the Paseo, and over the tree-tops towards the
capital, there is one of the most magnificent views in
the world. The eye takes in the marvellous panorama of
the vast plain studded with towns and hamlets, centred

102 MEXICO

with the glittering white of church tower and housetop
in the city itself, and ringed round with the distant hills
shrouded in a purple mist. Beyond these are the great
snow-capped volcanic peaks of Popocatepetl and Ixtacci-
huatl, which tower above the lesser mountains and domi-
nate the horizon.

In a wing of the castle is the Mexican military college,
conducted somewhat after the fashion of West Point.
Here the sons of the best Mexican families receive a military
education. They are a fine-looking set of young men,
wearing a uniform a good deal like that of the French
military schools. When the Americans took the castle
in the war of 1847, the cadets assisted in the defence, and
a large number of them fell. A modest monument to the
memory of these young heroes stands at the foot of the hill,
and on this fresh flowers are placed every morning.

The castle is surrounded by a beautiful park called the
Bosque, very much like the Bois de Boulogne, with miles
of shady walks and drives, under semi-tropical groves of
tree-ferns and palms, and above them is the foliage of some
fine oaks and wonderful cypresses. Of the latter there is
an ancient avenue, centuries old, from the boughs of which
Spanish moss hangs in graceful fringes. Beneath the shade
of these giant trees Montezuma is said to have held his
court, and here, too, the news was brought to him of the
Spanish invasion. Near the hill is a large stone basin into
which a spring drains. This, tradition — probably very
inaccurate — declares to have been Montezuma' s bath. In
later days it has been used as a water supply for the city.

Not far from Chapultepec, on one side of the Paseo, an
enterprising American company has started what is called
Luna Park, an imitation of the famous New York seaside
resort, Coney Island. Here there is a huge Ferris wheel,
a switchback railway, shows of every description and a

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 103

circus. The President, in his apartments in the castle,
can probably hear the revels of Luna Park.

Also near the castle is the Chapultepec Cafe, a fashionable
rendezvous, where one can get an excellent meal, served in
French style, or if not hungry, can sit outside at a little
marble-topped table, and watch the carriages while sipping
the ever popular Mexican lager beer. It is here that all
the cosmopolitan inhabitants of the capital gather on a fine
Sunday afternoon, and almost every European language
can then be heard. Almost as many carriages assemble
in the Paseo on Sundays as one can see in the Bois, and
a visitor can gain a very fair idea of the wealth and beauty
of the capital.

For the most part, the carriages are open barouches,
landaus and Victorias of the latest European makes, and
drawn by the Spanish- Arab type of horse, which, with their
curving necks, their glossy silken coats and sweeping tails,
make a wonderful picture in the sunshine. The coachmen
and footmen are dressed in liveries correct even to the cock-
ades, though many of the old-fashioned Mexican families
still favor the native serving dress, tight trousers edged
with gold buttons, short bolero coat, heavily braided, and
an enormous felt sombrero. Most of the carriages are
tenanted by dark-eyed Mexican beauties. The men either
drive dog-carts in English style, or ride on a row which
runs parallel with the carriage road round the park. There
are many smart automobiles to be seen, too, and there is
also a large mixture of humbler conveyances, with dozens
of blue-flagged cabs filled with men, women and children.

It is said that some Mexicans of good birth but of much
straitened means, who find it hard to keep up appear-
ances, send out their carriages with blue flags half the week,
and thus earn their keep as cabs. Many poorer citizens,
such as clerks, deny themselves every luxury to take this

104 MEXICO

drive with their families on Sunday, and squander all their
spare money on it.

The paths of the Paseo are filled with all sorts of people,
well-dressed Mexicans, Europeans and Americans, residents
and tourists, also people of the poorer classes, including
numbers of Indians, men and women, in their blankets and
rebosas. Groups of Mexican " mashers " stand on the edge
of the walks, criticising the fair occupants of the carriages
and seeking to attract their bewitching eyes. The Mexican
masher, it may be added, is called a lagartijo (pronounced
lah-ahr-tee-ho) , meaning "little lizard," because he basks
lazily in the sun at the street corner to ogle the fair sex.

He usually wears a French morning coat and trousers,
American patent leather shoes, with pointed toes, and an
English top hat, and in his fingers is the inevitable cigarette.

During the afternoon excellent music is played by the
band of the Republican Guard stationed near the Cafe,
where towards the evening hours the scene becomes won-
derfully animated, with the moving procession of vehicles
and the hundreds of pedestrians. In the far distance are
the blue mountains, sharply silhouetted against the clear
sky, which in the fading light takes on varied tints under
the rays of the setting sun. As the twilight comes, the
whole scene suggests a piece of illuminated fairyland;
the carriage lights flit, in the growing darkness, among the
trees like fireflies; the electric lamps flash out along the
Paseo; in the distance the sky glows with the lights of
the capital; and as the leaves of the trees idly stir in the
evening breeze, the band strikes up the stirring Mexican
National Anthem, and the pleasant hours at Chapultepec
come to an end.

On week-days, from six to seven, a procession of carriages
drives up and down San Francisco Street in an endless chain,
going down one side and returning on the other, the occu-

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 105

pants sitting up very straight and solemn, looking as if
they were taking part in a most serious function. Some of
the automobiles are quite imposing. I saw one gorgeous
car in which a wealthy Mexican and his family were riding.
The chauffeur was dressed in the height of motor style,
and in the rear, with folded arms, sat two French footmen,
resplendent in black attire, top-hats and white gloves.

Riding and promenading are not the only recreations
enjoyed by the people of Mexico City on Sunday afternoons,
for thousands flock to the ever popular bull-fights, which
are held in the Plaza de Toros or Bull-ring, not far from
Chapultepec. On Sundays the street-cars which run in the
direction of Chapultepec all bear a great label, "Toros "
(Bulls), and are packed with people.

The Plaza de Toros is a huge circular building of stone
and wood, with an interior that forms an immense amphi-
theatre, seating thousands of people. Rising to the top,
where the private boxes are situated, are tiers of seats,
and as there is no roof except over the outer circle shading
the boxes, there is a shady side called "Sombra," and a
sunny side, "Sol," with prices varying from ten to twenty-
five cents in the sun, and from fifty cents to a dollar and a
half in the shade.

Bull-fights or corridas de toros are conducted in much
the same way as in Spain, and have been too often de-
scribed to need repetition. In Mexico, however, the
spectators never seem satisfied unless several horses are
killed. The picadors, who carry pikes with which they
prod and torture the bull, are mounted on old hacks and
seem to purposely get in the way of the enraged animal.
Their horses get gored terribly, and are kept on their feet
as long as they can stand, streaming with blood. When-
ever they drop dead, other poor hacks are brought in to
take their places, the spectators sometimes shouting, " Otro

106 MEXICO

caballo" (Another horse). The bulls are of Spanish breed,
with huge horns, some of them imported from Spain, and
some of them bred locally.

I went to the bull-ring one Sunday afternoon and saw
six bulls killed. During the fight, several horses were gored
and despatched, until the whole place reeked with blood
like a shambles. The fight had been well advertised in
the newspapers, and the public were invited to see the
butchery of "six terrible bulls, unusually fierce — the
greatest fight on record." Most of the bulls were very
mild specimens, and submitted to being killed without much
of a fight. One of them turned tail and fled, leaping over
the fence at the entrance to the ring. The spectators were
furious, and shouted all sorts of uncomplimentary remarks
about the management. One man yelled, "Where are
the fierce bulls advertised in the Impartial?" to which the
"sol" or the "gallery gods" responded with hooting and
groans. All through the fight, the matadors and toreadors
were greeted with shouts of praise or denunciation whenever
they made a good coup or a bad mistake.

Most of the toreadors come from Spain, and as they get
from $1000 to $2500 for each performance many of them
are quite wealthy. The toreadors are lionized by the
lower classes in much the same way as prize-fighters are in
England and America. A popular toreador of Mexican
birth is a millionaire amateur who goes into the ring just
for the pure love of the sport.

As a rule, the Mexican upper classes do not visit the
bull-ring, and the President is never seen at a fight. As a
matter of fact, President Diaz endeavored to have the
sport abolished, but even the all-powerful Diaz could
not carry his point in this instance. The people adore
the pastime, and the Mexican small boy plays at bull-
fighting as the American boy does at baseball.

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 107

Suburban life is yearly becoming more popular with
people in Mexico City, and there are several Mexican equiv-
alents of our New Jersey suburban towns, where well-to-do
citizens have their homes. Most of these places are old
towns and villages adjacent to the city, and easily reached
by the electric street-cars. One of the prettiest suburban
towns is Tacubaya, which abounds in beautiful parks,
gardens and shady streets filled with flowers and fine trees.
Tacubaya lies on the hills back of Chapultepec, and was once
as infamous for gambling as Monte Carlo. The streets
were filled with gambling booths where every sort of game
of chance was played, and any one could wager from five
cents to a dollar ; while in the gambling houses there would
sometimes be $20,000 or $30,000 on the table at once. To-
day all is changed. Tacubaya is now a model of respecta-
bility, and gambling, if indulged in, has to be carried on far
more privately.

Twenty minutes' ride in a street-car took me, one after-
noon, to Popotla, where still stands the tree of la Noche
Triste (the Sorrowful Night), under which Cortes is said
to have wept on the night of his defeat by the Aztecs
(July 1, 1520). The tree, a cypress, gnarled and withered
by the hand of time, is enclosed by a high iron fence to
guard it from souvenir hunters. Some years ago, an Indian
fanatic lit a fire at the foot of the tree with the purpose of
burning it down, but it was fortunately discovered before
much damage was done.

The country round Mexico City abounds in mementos
of the mysterious races which once inhabited the country,
and there is hardly a district that does not contain the
remains of once imposing temples, palaces or tombs.
Among the most important of these are the Pyramids of
the Sun and Moon, which are situated near the village of
San Juan Teotihuacan, twenty-seven miles from the city,

108 MEXICO

and reached by the Mexican Central Railway. The village
marks the site of a famous Toltec city, and some wonderful
structures raised by the Toltecs are said to have been stand-
ing there at the time of the Spanish Conquest, but were sub-
sequently reduced to ruins. Teotihuacan means "City of
the Gods," and the ancient city may have been a holy
place or city of temples. There is a great difference of
opinion as to whether the Toltecs or some race that pre-
ceded them built the pyramids and erected various great
structures near to them, the ruins of which still exist.
Some archeologists assert, however, that they are as old
as the ancient works of Egypt and India.

In company with an American friend, I went out one
day to see the pyramids, which stand in the midst of a great
plain. Surrounding them in all directions there are ruins
of an ancient city with fortifications and walls, one of the
latter measuring 200 feet in width. The Pyramid of the Sun
is 216 feet high, the base 751 feet by 721, while the top is 59
by 105 ; the Moon Pyramid is somewhat smaller. Both are
supposed to have served as bases for temples which stood
on their summits. In their interior construction a mixture
of clay and volcanic pebbles was used, over which was laid
a facing of light porous stone, and this, in turn, thickly
coated with white stucco. But with the progress of time
they have lost their original appearance, and now resemble
earthen mounds. At the time of the Conquest, a temple
stood on the larger pyramid, having a colossal statue of
the sun made of a single block of stone. In a hollow in
the centre of this there was a planet of fine gold. The
temple and the figure of the sun were destroyed by the
Spaniards, who also seized the gold.

There are several smaller pyramids or mounds on the
plain, some of which have been excavated, revealing in at
least one case chambers with frescoed walls. It has been

THE SIGHTS OF THE CAPITAL 109

suggested that they were shrines attached to the greater
temples. The frescoes, cornices and walls were colored in
ten or twenty different shades or tints. In the Moon
Pyramid, some years back, a passage was discovered, the
walls of which were of cut stone carefully orientated.

The Indians who live about Teotihuacan have some
queer ideas concerning the ruins, and firmly believe that the
pyramids were built by giants. Most of them are con-
vinced that treasure is buried somewhere among the crum-
bling walls ; and they can sometimes be seen prowling about
the ancient stonework as if in search of this mythical gold.
Occasionally, as I discovered, their ideas of wealth are on
a much humbler basis. As we were examining the rugged
sides of the Moon Pyramid, we suddenly came upon an
Indian woman, wrapped in her faded rebosa, seated among
the debris of ages, gazing pensively at a large stone on which
there was some rude carving. "Musing over the glories
of her ancestors, poor soul/' suggested my companion, and
so it seemed. But the thoughts of this female descendant
of the Aztecs were apparently of a different nature; for
on catching sight of us, she hurried forward with out-
stretched palm, and gave utterance to the words so con-
stantly heard in Mexico, "Solo un centavo, senores" (Only
one penny, gentlemen).

When contrasted with the present decadence of the
Indian races in Mexico, the wonderful skill exhibited by
the ancient builders in the construction of their temples
and palaces seems all the more remarkable. Charnay, the
French archeologist, who made a thorough exploration of
the ruins of Tula and Teotihuacan, expresses deep admira-
tion for their architectural designs. In his work, "The
Ancient Cities of the New World," he says: "Unlike most f
primitive nations, they used every material at once. They \
coated their inner walls with mud and mortar, faced their i

110 MEXICO

outer walls with baked bricks and cut stone, had wooden
roofs and brick and stone staircases. They were acquainted
with pilasters and caryatides, with square and round
columns; indeed, they seem to have been familiar with
every architectural device. That they were painters and
sculptors we had ample indications in a house that we un-
earthed, where the walls were covered with rosettes, palms,
and red, white and gray geometrical figures on a black
ground." In several places the remains of irrigation works
have been found, showing that the land was carefully
cultivated in ancient times.

A curious causeway named Calle de los Muertos (Street
of the Dead) connects the Sun Pyramid with the Moon
Pyramid; and on either side of this is a terrace of cement
and lava faced with mortar of high polish and brightly
colored. Along this street many mounds have been opened,
revealing chests of cut stone containing bones, ornaments
of obsidian, earthen vases and miniature earthen masks.
One theory is that these masks were portraits of the dead,
buried in the same way as in the Egyptian tombs . Charnay ,
who collected a number of these masks, says: "Among
them are types which do not seem to belong to America;
a negro, whose thick lips, flat nose and woolly hair pro-
claim his African origin; a Chinese head, Caucasian and
Japanese specimens ; heads with retreating foreheads, and
not a few with Greek profiles. The lower jaw is straight
or projecting, the faces smooth or bearded; in short, it is
a wonderful medley, indicative of the numerous races who
succeeded each other and amalgamated on this continent,
which until lately was supposed to be so new and is in truth
so old."

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CHAPTER VI

CHURCHES AND MIRACLES

MEXICO CITY, like London, possesses a number of old
churches, many of which have been overtaken by the on-
ward march of commerce, and find themselves to-day sur-
rounded by prosaic stores and warehouses. Some of these
old structures date from the early days of the Conquest;
they give a touch of the picturesque to otherwise un-
attractive streets; and their history, too, is often full of
romantic interest. Few of them are architecturally beauti-
ful, the outside usually being far more imposing than the
interior. They are generally built of stone and stucco,
painted with kalsomine or distemper, which has long ago
faded into soft tints of pink, yellow or cream, giving them
an appearance of great antiquity.

One of these old churches, Jesus Nazareno, is famous
for having been founded by Cortes shortly after his occupa-
tion of the country. Large sums were lavished by him for
this building, which was begun in l§Zg, and took nearly a
hundred years to complete. Appropriately enough, the
bones of the great Conquistador rested here. He had
directed that should he die in Spain his bones were to be
taken, after ten years, to Mexico and deposited in the
Convent de la Concepcion, which he proposed to erect, but
never built.

Cortes died on December 2, i§4J, in Castilleja de la
Questa, Spain. His body was placed in the tomb of the
dukes of Medina Sidonia, and a decade later was removed

ill

112 MEXICO

to Mexico to the Church of San Francisco in Texcoco.
There they remained until 1629, when Don Pedro Corte*s,
his grandson, and the last of the male line, died. The bones
of the Conqueror, together with those of the latter, were
with great ceremony placed in the Church of San Francisco
in Mexico City. But even here they were not allowed to
rest longer than 165 years, for in 1734 they were once more
exhumed and interred in a splendid marble mausoleum in
the church of Jesus Nazareno. This was their home for
thirty years ; but during the War of Independence, when
everything Spanish was hateful to the Mexicans, the coffin
was secretly removed and hidden in another part of the
church. Later it was sent to Spain, and found eventually
a final resting-place in the tomb of the dukes of Monteleone
in Italy. Thus the remains of this great Spaniard, after
crossing the Atlantic twice and having been entombed once
in the country of his birth and thrice in the country he
conquered, found, at last, a final resting place in an alien
land.

The ancient-looking church of Nuestra Senora de los
Angeles, which faces the Plaza de Zaragosa, about a mile
from the Alameda, was founded in 1580 as the result of a
strange miracle. During that year the city was inundated,
and in the course of the flood an Aztec chieftain, Isayoque,
discovered a picture of the Virgin floating in the water.

He erected a chapel of adobe, and had a replica of the
picture painted on the walls. Fifteen years afterwards
a larger church was built over the mud-brick one, keeping
intact the wall on which the picture was painted, in the
design of which so many angels figured that the shrine
was called "Our Lady of the Angels." In 1607 much
damage was done to the church by another flood, and the
picture was injured, but the face and hands were unhurt,
an accident which was superstitiously magnified into a

CHURCHES AND MIRACLES 113

miracle. Two centuries later the present church was built,
and the remains of the miraculous painting, covered with
glass, are shown within.

Not far from the Alameda there also stands the venerable
church of San Hipolito, which marks the spot where the
Spaniards were defeated and slaughtered by the Aztecs
on the famous "Sorrowful Night" during their retreat from
the city. Then the place was occupied by a canal, but this
dried up years ago. On the victorious return of the
Spaniards on the feast-day of San Hipolito, August 13, 1521,
a Spanish soldier, Juan Garrido, built a small chapel of adobe
in memory of his fallen comrades. This was called San
Hipolito of the Martyrs, and the name is still preserved.
In 1599 a much larger church was begun, and completed
in 1739. For many years on the 13th of each August
the monks made processions to the church, bearing the
crimson banner used by Cortes during the wars of the con-
quest. On the church wall is the " Sorrowful Night " me-
morial tablet. Cut on the stone is an eagle, with an Indian
in his claws, the rest of the design being composed of musical
instruments, arrows, spears and trophies of the Aztecs.

Another interesting church is that of Jesus Maria, founded
in 1557 by two Spaniards, with the idea that the female
descendants of the conquerors should take the veil. The
convent was completed in 1580 and removed to its present
site in 1582, when there came a nun who was alleged to be
a daughter of Philip II of Spain, and a niece of the then
Archbishop of Mexico. This story gains corroboration from
the fact that the convent benefited largely by grants from
the royal treasury of Spain and the viceregal exchequer of
Mexico.

Almost all these churches, and in fact most of those
found throughout the temperate regions of Mexico, are of
similar design, with a central dome and Doric towers.

114 MEXICO

Some scores of the finer city churches and convents were
confiscated by the government after the disestablishment,
and are now used as warehouses, hotels, private residences
or government offices.

For two centuries after the Conquest there was an epoch
of church-building in Mexico. Peon and millionaire sub-
scribed lavishly, and the remarkable feature of this great
outburst of building was the way in which Aztec and
Spanish art were blended, with a result that, if somewhat
barbarically florid, is very impressive. Even in secluded
villages and townships you can see towers and domes which
rival the best work of Italy and are reminiscent of the
triumphs of Moorish art. For the most part, they were the
work of the native Indians, who carried out the architectural
ideas of their Spanish masters. Many of the intricate designs
and elaborate figures doubtless represent the mythology of
the Aztecs, blended with the traditions of the victorious
church. In some details there is a strong likeness to the
strange symbols of the ancient Egyptian and Persian monu-
ments. The ornate fagades often exhibit a blending of
the two religions, the Christian saints being substituted for
the pagan deities.

In some quite small villages the churches astound with
their splendor. Here and there is a towering fane with
hardly a trace of a human dwelling near it. But this is
not the case in the tropical portions of Mexico, where the
churches are of a very humble and unadorned nature.
Doubtless this is due to the fact that the early conquerors
did not penetrate the hot lands, and also to the difficulty
which the constant risk of earthquakes presented to the
church-builders.

For the most part the beauty of the churches is external,
the interiors being often disappointing and garish in their
ornamentation. But as you stand outside you feel strangely

CHURCHES AND MIRACLES

impressed with the weird beauty of the extravagant and
often bizarre sculptures. On this point Charles Dudley
Warner says : " There is a touch of decay nearly everywhere,
a crumbling and defacement of colors which adds some-
what of pathos to these old Mexican structures, but in nearly
every one there is some unexpected fancy, a belfry oddly
placed, a figure that surprises with the quaintness of its
position, or a rich bit of deep stone carving; and in the
humblest and plainest fagade there is a note of individual
yielding to a whim of expression that is very fascinating.
The architects escaped from the commonplace and con-
ventional ; they understood proportion without regularity,
and the result is perhaps not explainable to those who are
only accustomed to English church architecture."

In keeping with the somewhat tawdry ornamentation
of the interiors, the organs of most Mexican churches are
very inferior, and most of them have too much resemblance
to the old-fashioned street organ, lacking both musical
qualities and power. The choir-boys rarely have good
voices. They are too nasal and harsh.

Most of the old churches were erected as the result of
some supposed supernatural occurrence, Mexico, for two
centuries after the Conquest, having been a veritable land
of miracles. Nearly every town and village has its legend
of miraculous appearances of the Virgin, of saints or angels.
Almost every church has its wonderworking image or
picture, superstitiously guarded through the ages. For
example, at Tacubaya, not far from the capital, there is
the arbol benito (blessed tree). The story is that an aged
monk, weary with his work among the Indians, rested under
the shade and gave the tree his benediction, praying that
it might be blessed with eternal youth. No sooner had
the good man spoken than a choir of sweet angel voices
was heard, and a spring of pure water gushed from the

116 MEXICO

•

roots. You really feel you must believe this, for the tree
is standing there, ever green, and the little rivulet flows on
forever.

The church of La Piedad, in another suburb, was built by
a Dominican in 1562 in fulfilment of a vow. He was com-
missioned by the brotherhood to bring them from Rome a
picture of the Virgin and the dead Christ, painted by a well-
known artist. Obliged to come away in a hurry, he brought
the picture in an unfinished state. During his journey the
vessel was overwhelmed in a terrible storm, and the monk
vowed to the Virgin that if the ship came safely to port he
would build a church in her honor. The prayer was an-
swered; and more than this, for when the painting was
exposed in Mexico, it was found to be finished in all its
details. This remarkable picture is hung to-day over the
altar.

At Los Remedios, three miles from the city, stands the
church of our Lady of Succor, or Seiiora de los Remedios.
During the flight of the " Sorrowful Night" a Spanish
soldier, Juan de Villafuente, had on him an image of the
Virgin. Wounded and unable to guard it, he hid it under
a maguey plant. Twenty years later, an Aztec chief,
Cequauhtzin or Juan Aguila, while hunting on the hill of
Totaltepec, saw the Virgin in a vision, and she told him to
seek the image. The chief searched, found it under a
maguey plant and took it home. In the morning it had
disappeared, and on returning he found it again under the
maguey. Once more he took the image back to his house,
where he placed fruit and flowers as offerings before it,
but it returned to the plant. Again he brought it back,
and this time, being a cautious man, he locked it in a strong-
box and all night long slept on the lid. But even these
precautions were in vain ; for when dawn came, the box was
empty, and the image was found under the maguey. The

CHUECHES AND MIRACLES 117

Indian told his story to the priests, and they, convinced that
a miracle had taken place, built a shrine on the spot and
placed the image in it. This was afterwards replaced by
the present church, begun in 1574, and the restless image,
which is of rudely carved wood, much disfigured by time,
is now enshrined on the great altar. It measures about
eight inches. The gourd in which the Aztec chief placed
his offerings before it is also preserved in a silken case.

Greater far than all these miracles, however, is that of
our Lady of Guadalupe, the patron saint of Mexico, which
is honored by a great national festival on the tenth of every
December. The shrine of Mexico's saint is an imposing
church at Guadalupe Hidalgo, about three miles from the
capital. Thousands of Indians pour into the city to attend
this festival, some by train, some on horseback or burro,
hundreds more tramping on foot from remote parts of the
Republic.

The legend to which these remarkable pilgrimages owe
their origin dates from the early days of the Conquest. In
the year 1531, so the story goes, an Indian, Juan Diego,
a native of Tolpetlac, walking over the hill of Guadalupe
to mass, of a sudden heard the singing of angels, and to him
appeared the Virgin, who bade him go to the bishop and
say that it was her wish that in her honor a temple be built
on the spot. Juan hurried to the bishop, Don Juan Zu-
marraga, who, however, doubted the story. Much disap-
pointed, Juan reclimbed the hill; and again the Virgin
appeared to him, bidding him once more convey her com-
mands to the bishop. Juan again returned, but the bishop
still discredited the message, and asked the Indian to prove
his story in some way. On his departure, the bishop sent
two of his servants to follow him, but on approaching the
hill he mysteriously disappeared from view. The third
time the Virgin appeared, and Juan told her the bishop

118 MEXICO

demanded a proof of her appearance. She bade him come
the next day, when she would give him a sign. On his
return home, the Indian found his uncle dangerously ill,
and during the next day he was busy nursing the sick
man.

The following morning Juan started for Tlaltelolco to
fetch a confessor. In order to avoid meeting the Virgin,
he did not take the usual road, but went by another on the
eastern side of the hill, yet, despite this precaution, the Virgin
again appeared. Juan told her the reason of his absence
the day before and of his errand. She replied that he need
have no fear, as his uncle was completely restored. Then
she bade him gather flowers from the barren hillside, and
to his amazement he saw beautiful flowers growing around.
The Virgin ordered him to gather these and take them to
the bishop, warning him not to show them to any one until
the bishop had seen them. Carefully wrapping the flowers
in his blanket or tilma, Juan hurried to the bishop's house.
On his arrival, he unfolded his tilma, when upon it there
was seen a beautifully painted image of the Virgin. Taking
this wonderful picture, the bishop placed it reverently in
the chapel of his residence, and when Juan returned home
he found his uncle quite well, as the Virgin had declared.

The bishop ordered a chapel to be built on the spot where
the Virgin had appeared, and in it was placed the holy
painting in February, 1532. It is now kept in a tabernacle
in a frame of gold and silver, covered with plate-glass.
The tilma is a coarse cloth of ixtl fibre, and of the picture
which is painted on it much of the coloring still remains,
the blue robe and pink skirt of the Virgin and the surround-
ing halo being wonderfully well preserved. Ecclesiastics
declare that the painting has been examined by many
Mexican artists, but the manner of its exact production
remains a mystery. Sceptical Mexicans scoff at this and

CHURCHES AND MIRACLES 119

declare the picture is a crude piece of work, while admitting
that the coloring is remarkable considering its age.

The present church of Guadalupe was completed in 1836
at a cost of two and a half million dollars. It is a massive
stone structure, with a central dome flanked by towers
filled with bells. Its height from the floor to the dome is
125 feet. In size the church is quite a cathedral, and its
services are so organized. The interior is magnificently
adorned, a massive railing of solid silver weighing twenty-
six tons enclosing the high altar of Carrara marble. Here
is enshrined the sacred tilma. Over the altar are some
Latin lines in honor of the Virgin, written specially by Pope
Leo XIII. The walls of the basilica are adorned with five
frescos portraying the history of Guadalupe. In 1895 a
golden crown, richly bejewelled, was presented to the church
to be suspended over the painting, the gems having been^
subscribed by the women of Mexico from their own jewels. |
It is a glittering mass of diamonds, rubies and sapphires.

To the right of the church is a chapel built over a spring
which gushed from the ground where the Virgin stood, and
which the superstitious believe has medicinal properties.
At the back of the chapel are the tombs of Santa Ana and
several other men famous in Mexican history. Beginning
at the church is the hill of Guadalupe, ascended by a long
flight of stone steps which lead to a shrine at the summit.
It is a long, tiring climb, but all the pious who make pil-
grimages to the church ascend the hill. Halfway up are
the so-called Stone Sails of Guadalupe, an interesting monu-
ment of the romantic past. Some two hundred years ago,
so the story runs, a crew of sailors caught in a storm prayed
to the Virgin of Guadalupe, vowing that if they were brought
safely to land they would carry their ship's foremast to the
hill of Guadalupe and set the sails up before her shrine.
Being saved, the sailors fulfilled their promise, and their

120 MEXICO

curious monument was eventually replaced with sails of
stone.

On the day of the great festival, which is kept as a public
holiday all over Mexico, I drove with some friends in an
automobile to Guadalupe. The electric cars which run
out to the city were packed with people, mostly Indians.
Hundreds of men, women and children were walking in
the road, some coming from Guadalupe, others going there.
A large force of the mounted Republican Guard were
stationed along the road to keep order. When we arrived
within a mile of the church, the crowd became so dense
that the police stopped our car. We got out, and making
very slow progress, eventually reached the church, where
we witnessed a most remarkable scene. The plaza in front
of the church was packed with a moving mass of Indians
of every tribe and color, wrapped in bright blankets of every
hue, the women all wearing the inevitable blue rebosa.
There were long lines of booths for the sale of tamales,
chili-con-carne, green and red peppers and all the other
weird eatables the Indian heart delighteth in, together with
gallons of pulque and mescal. There were stalls where
crudely colored pictures of the sacred tilma and tilma
postcards were on sale, and a roaring trade was being done
in candles, beads, charms and trinkets of every kind. The
gambling booths were surrounded by excited crowds of
Indians intent on losing their last centavos, and a touch
of the modern, with its vulgarity, was introduced by the
whining screech of a phonograph and the strumming of a
piano-organ which ground out tunes for the merry-go-
round.

Inside the churchyard, a large stone-paved enclosure,
were encamped hundreds of Indian families, some with all
their belongings and eatables, a mass of men, women,
children and babies. Most of them were filthy and travel-

CHURCH AT TEPOZOTLAN.
A fine specimen of Mexican church architecture.

CHURCHES AND MIRACLES 121

stained, and the smell of this unwashed humanity was almost
intolerable. The encampment of these Indian pilgrims
extended for nearly a mile around the church; here and
there fires were burning, and repulsive-looking food was being
cooked. Pushing our way through the crowd, we managed
to enter the church, which was filled with kneeling Indian
worshippers, holding tapers in their hands. Almost every
tribe in the Republic was represented in this strange as-
sembly, the worshippers all pressing forward in the intensity
of their devotion, trying to get still closer to the shrine of
their patroness.

Mass was being sung by gorgeously robed priests, among
whom was the Archbishop of Mexico, wearing vestments of
white and gold. Choir boys in surplices of crimson and
white, mostly swarthy young Indians, sang incessantly,
their voices being very nasal and harsh. The Indians may
sing musically in their own language, but when they speak
in Spanish or sing in Latin their voices are almost always
unpleasantly nasal. But the scene was one which must
live in the memory. The great church, ablaze with candles ;
the dense throng of devout worshippers in their tattered
blankets and worn rebosas; the glittering gold ornaments
on the altar, with its wealth of floral decorations, above
which hung the sacred tilma with its gorgeous crown ; the
regal pomp of the clerics standing grouped within the glitter
of the solid silver chancel rail; the clouds of incense, — all
made such a scene as is scarcely to be described.

While we were viewing the interior of the church, we
observed many Indians squirming on the tiled floor, push-
ing and struggling round small squares of crystal glass.
At first they appeared to be searching for something, and I
thought they must be scrambling for coins which had been
thrown to them by visitors. But on approaching nearer,
the small squares of glass proved to contain saintly relics

122 MEXICO

of some kind. The Indians, both men and women, kissed
the glass repeatedly, rubbed their hands and faces on it,
and some laid their babies on it, all the while uttering pious
ejaculations in Spanish and Indian. It was a wild, weird
scene. There were several squares of glass set in the tiled
floor in different parts of the church, and each had its mass
of Indians squirming and struggling around it. Many of
the devotees were suffering from bodily ailments for which
they sought a miraculous cure. In some parts of the church
silver feet, arms and legs of miniature size are displayed
on black cloth panels, having been offered by afflicted
pilgrims who have been restored.

It is estimated that over forty thousand Indians attend
the Guadalupe celebration every year. This means a
great harvest for the railways, which run special excursion
trains from all parts of Mexico. Pilgrims are coming, how-
ever, at all times of the year, for Guadalupe is the Mecca
of the poor Indian, and he who has seen the sacred shrine
is ever an object of envy.

CHAPTER VII

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE

IN Mexico City a visitor sees Mexican social life scarcely
at its best, if he is anxious to learn something of the real
manners and customs of the people. For the capital is not
truly Mexico — at any rate, so far as the richer classes are
concerned. It is a city of motley civilizations; and in
fashionable circles one finds a great deal of Madrid, a little
of Paris and slight infusions of London and New York.
Still all this is very superficial, and if the stranger has the
good fortune to break through the adamantine barrier of
etiquette, prejudice and precedent which stifle social inter-
course among well-born Mexicans, he will be surprised to
find how thin is the veneer of culture, and how much of
seventeenth-century Spanish custom still survives in the
daily lives of the owners of twentieth-century motor-cars,
and among women who wear the latest Parisian fashions.

Owing her civilization to Spain it is, of course, natural
that Mexico should be largely governed by Spanish social
ideas ; but the curious fact is that many customs long ago
discarded in Spain are still observed in Spain's former col-
ony. Women are still kept jealously guarded from the
outer world; strangers are rarely admitted to the family
circle ; and the whole social system is hedged in by as many
precautions as a Chinese mandarin adopts to guard his
household against the evil influence of the "foreign devils."

High society in the capital is largely a replica of Spanish
society, but is far more exclusive and old-fashioned than

123

124 MEXICO

that of Madrid. It is composed, for the most part, of those
families who have been rich for generations, who own huge
estates; and besides these are many of the higher govern-
ment officials, successful lawyers and other professional
men. The majority of these people are of pure Spanish
descent, or represent French and Italian ancestry.

To any one familiar with the life of London, Paris or New
York, society in the Mexican capital appears extremely
dull. Dances, musicales and other social entertainments
seldom take place, and it is quite unusual for people to dine
in parties at fashionable restaurants. Such recreations as
golfing and tennis are absolutely unknown to the fashion-
able Mexican woman. The chief amusements of the upper
classes are mostly limited to driving and family dinner
parties, which are all very proper, very unexciting and
must become very boring. If a stranger is invited to a
meal, it is usually to luncheon, a heavy, full-course repast,
served at one o'clock, followed by coffee and cigarettes,
served in the drawing-room. Chocolate, a favorite bever-
age, is also often served, being made very thick, and ac-
companied with rich cakes.

There are some palatial houses in the capital, many of
them situated in frowzy residential districts which are
being rapidly transformed into business centres. Shabby
and unattractive on the outside, they are often richly fur-
nished within, and abound in wonderful old furniture,
bric-a-brac and works of art. In recent years some
wealthy people have built handsome houses of French de-
sign in the new residential quarters, notably in and about
the Paseo de la Reforma, these mansions being also dec-
orated and furnished in modern French style. Hardly
any of the houses, old or new, are equipped with fireplaces
or other systems of heating, and on cold days are far from
comfortable. In the old houses there are spacious patios,

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THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 125

open to the sky, and in these meals are often served, even
in the winter time, when the temperature occasionally
falls below fifty degrees, and a good blazing fire would be
welcome.

Few Mexican women are domesticated, and everything
is left to the servants ; for the lady of the house would con-
sider it disgraceful to do anything or to see to anything
herself. This has a most deplorable result upon domestic
arrangements, and even has the effect of deteriorating the
value of some of the ancient plate and china, which are treas-
ured possessions of the wealthier families. Left to the
tender mercies of untrained and badly managed servants,
they get tarnished and broken, lost or stolen. The care
which an American or English woman will lavish upon the
decoration of her dinner-table is inconceivable to Mexican
women. Thus, to save themselves trouble in a land which
is one large hothouse, they generally decorate their rooms
with artificial flowers.

Many Mexican women of the fashionable class have been
educated in French convents, and owing to this, French is
very generally spoken in society circles. On the other
hand, many of the younger men have been to English schools,
and some of them have been at Oxford and Cambridge.
They have thus acquired strong British sympathies, which
they show by getting their clothes from London, and intro-
ducing various English customs, such as afternoon tea,
which is popularly known as "5 o'clock." Some of the
wealthy families, too, employ English governesses, and it
has become quite a fad among fashionable folk to have
English coachmen. A knowledge of English is thus be-
coming much more general among the upper classes. Many
members of the Mexican smart set, too, visit New York
and Washington during the social season, and have in this
way acquired a few American ideas.

126 MEXICO

Children are brought up in much the same way as in
Spain, but are kept somewhat more secluded from the out-
side world, this being especially so in the case of the girls.
In the household, however, as visitors are mostly intimate
friends and relations, the youthful members of the family
enjoy great freedom, and the system of confining them in
nurseries or schoolrooms is not generally common.

Suspicion of strangers, as already remarked, is the in-
variable rule among the wealthy classes in Mexico, and one
must know a Mexican for a long time before being granted
the privilege of entering his household as a guest. Once
admitted, however, they are found to be the most charming
hosts in the world. Nothing is too much trouble for them
once they adopt you as a friend. When visiting a country
house, your host will think nothing of riding many miles
with you over rough roads on your leaving, simply as a
mark of esteem.

Mexicans, in fact, are full of Latin enthusiasm; their
southern blood is shown by their animated gestures in
conversation, and by their flow of complimentary expres-
sions which are never meant. They take sudden fancies
for persons and things, gush over them for a time, and then
quickly forget them. For this they must be forgiven, as
it is simply a matter of racial temperament.

Despite the restrictions on society in the capital, there
are many delightful people among the higher classes, who
always take a foremost part in entertaining visiting for-
eigners. The President and his wife are usually the nomi-
nal heads of society, and preside at a number of interesting
functions during the winter season. Another distinguished
member of the official circle is the Governor of the Federal
District and Mayor. This post was formerly held by Seiior
Landa y Escandon, a wealthy man and principal represen-
tative of the wealthy Escandon family, who had a beautiful

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 127

house on the outskirts of the city. He spoke English
fluently, having been educated in England. Another
popular host was Sefior Limantour, former Minister of
Finance, who was of French descent and a man of great
culture.

An important element in the social life of the city is
the diplomatic corps, which is quite large, there being some
twenty-seven duly accredited representatives of foreign
powers, including those of Russia and Japan. A great
deal of entertaining is done by the diplomats, and especially
by the Spanish, German and Russian ministers. The
British government, at the present time, is represented by
Sir Lionel Garden, whose official residence in the Colonia
Cuauhtemoc is one of the finest in the city. Sir Lionel,
who was appointed after the retirement of President Diaz,
has had over twenty years' experience as a diplomat in
South America. He thoroughly understands Spanish-
American methods, and he speaks Spanish fluently.
Among British residents he is deservedly popular, and he
has done much to assist British commercial interests in the
Republic. The United States, at present, is represented
by Mr. O'Shaughnessy, charge d'affaires. Mr. Henry Lane
Wilson, the former American representative, and who
retired with the advent of the present Democratic adminis-
tration, ranked first among the members of the diplomatic
corps, as he alone was accredited as an ambassador.

Among the higher classes art and literature are keenly
appreciated, and several painters and authors of Mexican
origin are famous outside their own country. Mexico has
produced many writers, some of considerable eminence.
Perhaps the most interesting of these were the native Ind-
ians, Ixtlilxochitli, Tezozomoc and Nitzahualcoyotl, who
lived at the time of the Conquest and chronicled the glories
of their ancestors hi Spanish prose and poetry. Verse has

128 MEXICO

always played an important part in Mexican literature.
The chief modern poets are Justo Sierra, Manuel Flores,
\ Juan de Dios Pesa (known as the Mexican Longfellow)
I and Jose Peon y Contras. Among the novelists are Senor
i Irenio Paz; editor and novelist, whose stories are valuable
for the pen pictures of Mexican life which they present, and
Vincent Kiva Palacio, whose works are noted for the ele-
gance and purity of their style. Senor Mariscal, Minister
of Foreign Affairs, is also a well-known writer, and has
translated into Spanish the works of several well-known
American writers. Some Mexican plays and books of verse
have been widely read in Spanish-speaking countries, but
as yet there have been no translations into English. The
Mexican government does much to foster literary talent,
and a deserving writer is certain of official patronage. As-
j sistance is also given to art students, over two hundred
! prominent young artists and sculptors having been pen-
/ sioned and sent abroad to pursue their studies. Among
I the artists of national repute are Senores Leandro Izaguirre,
! Ramos Martinez and Alberto Fuster, who studied hi Rome
i and Florence and have produced some notable works.
Senor Juan Telles Toledo is the foremost Mexican portrait
painter.

While on the subject of literature, a few words about
Spanish as spoken in Mexico may be of interest. Most
of the Spaniards who colonized the country came from An-
dalusia, and the Spanish commonly spoken to-day in Mexico
is not exactly classical or Castilian. For example, the true
Spaniard pronounces the word "cielo" (heaven) as the-
aylo, whereas the Mexican gives the c its English value, and
never the sound as is given in this and other words in
Spain. The Mexicans have another peculiarity of speech.
When asking a question, they invariably end the sentence
with "no." For instance, a man will ask, "Are you com-

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 129

ing out, no?" A shopkeeper says, "Will you buy some-
thing to-day, no?" This strikes on the American ear as
very strange. Many Spanish words, too, have been altered.
Thus, manteca, meaning "butter" in Spain, has been
changed in Mexico into mantequilla. A large number
of Indian words have also been incorporated in the language,
such as sarape, a blanket, for which in Spain the word
"manta" is used.

People of wealth in the capital are taking a keen interest
in motoring, and large numbers of cars, mostly American
makes, are seen in the streets. It is due to the influence
of these motor enthusiasts that the suburban roads have
of late been greatly improved. While I was in the city,
a new motor road was completed to San Angel, a pictur-
esque and beautiful suburb a mile or two out, where many
wealthy citizens have their houses standing among gardens
of flowers and palms. The inauguration was marked
by a military procession, the firing of cannon, a display of
fireworks; school children sang hymns and scattered
flowers, and the governor of the Federal District, an en-
thusiastic motorist, made a stirring speech. In San Angel
is a popular motoring resort — a beautiful old Spanish
mansion — which has been transformed into a luxurious
hotel, furnished in a style appropriate to its ancient char-
acter and with all its quaintness preserved. On the day
of the celebration, I lunched with some motoring friends in
the spacious patio, filled with tropical flowers and shrubbery,
where a fountain tinkled merrily, and numerous singing
birds soothed us into a feeling of man ana.

Another motor road has been laid and opened to Toluca,
a curious old town with a population of twenty-five thou-
sand and a reputation for brewing the best beer in Mexico.
The principal church there was built in 1585, and is remark-
able as containing the first church organ made in the New

130 MEXICO

World. The trip to Toluca is full of interest, the road com-
manding views of some fine mountain scenery.

Mexicans of all classes, especially in the country dis-
tricts, are born horsemen, and are much interested in horse-
racing. The races in the capital, however, are very dif-
ferent from those held in the United States. Ladies rarely
attend them, and as they are not of a really public char-
acter, the crowds of spectators, the bookmakers and other
followers of the turf seen at American races are never in
evidence. There is a good track near Mexico City owned
by the Jockey Club, but owing to the high altitude, which
affects the breathing of animals as well as human beings,
it is only about half the length of an American track, the
horses being unable to cover a greater distance. As a rule,
the horses are small and wiry, but wonderfully fast and
enduring.

Motoring and horse-racing do something towards reliev-
ing the dulness of life in the capital ; but dull as it is, the
life of the upper classes seems positively gay in comparison
with the humdrum existence of people lower down in the
social scale. From an American point of view, the social
life of the Mexican middle classes certainly seems unbear-
ably monotonous, those recreations upon which the mass
of the people in New York, for instance, so largely depend,
such as out-door sports, exhibitions and music halls, being
altogether unknown, while the cheaper theatres are patron-
ized chiefly by men.

There are, strange to say, no music-halls, in the strict
sense, in Mexico City. Latterly, however, there has been
an outburst of cinematograph shows which advertise their
attractions by electric signs and seem to do a roaring busi-
ness. About five moving-picture exhibitions are given
every hour, each of these being called a tanda. At the con-
clusion of a tanda a collector passes through the hall and

TYPICAL MEXICAN WOMEN OF THE UPPER CLASS.

PUBLIC SCHOOL CHILDREN.

Youthful Mexican Indians whom the government is educating.
(See page 148.)

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 131

demands payment for the next. This system is also fol-
lowed in most Mexican theatres, although it applies more
particularly to the cheaper and smaller houses. In these
places, people simply pay for an act, and then again for the
next if they wish to remain. In all the theatres, between
the acts, the men, with their hats on, stand up and survey
the audience ; and more curiously still, even the fashionable
women rise from their seats and glance round the house
through their lorgnettes.

The three chief theatres in the capital are the Teatro
Principale, chiefly reserved for melodrama and vaudeville
performances ; the Renacimiento, which holds an audience
of two thousand, where are presented Italian and French
opera as well as the masterpieces of Mexican and Spanish
dramatists; and lastly the Arbeu, reserved for concerts
and dramatic performances. The Salon de Conciertos is a
concert hall with a fine auditorium, while the Circo Teatro
Orrin is a kind of hippodrome. When gala performances
are given, the Circo is splendidly adorned with flowers
and flags, bouquets and button-holes being presented to
the audience. The President has a box, and on state
occasions is always present.

Mexicans are very fond of music, and in nearly every
house of the wealthy classes you find a good piano, some-
times of excellent make. Many ladies play well and sym-
pathetically, but they do not often sing. The regimental
bands are really excellent, and every town has its plaza
centred with a bandstand, where music is heard every night.
In the interior of Mexico guitars, mandolins and violins
are very common, as also crudely formed harps of an ancient
pattern. The Indian music is usually of a very melancholy
description, which is increased by the fact that the natives
chant or rather howl their choruses in a style far from
musical. There are, however, several pretty and stirring

132 MEXICO

songs by native composers; while the Mexican national
anthem is truly inspiring, and such songs as "La Golon-
drina" (The Swallow), the Mexican "Home Sweet Home,"
are irresistibly sweet.

Until recently, it was the custom, even in large cities,
for people of the upper class to promenade in the inner
circle of the Plaza from half -past seven to half -past eight
in the evening, while the band was playing, the ladies walk-
ing two or three abreast, strolling round and round in one
direction, while the men walked in the other. As they
passed, greetings would be exchanged, such as, "Adios,
seiior" and "Adios, senorita" (adios being a greeting as
well as a farewell). Young men and women thus had a
chance to see each other and start flirtations. The peons,
the blanketed masses, also promenaded in the Plaza; but
they always kept to the outer circle, the line between the
two classes being distinctly kept. If a peon had dared to
trespass in the inner circle, he would have been ejected
by the police. Americans and other foreigners walked, of
course, on the inner path.

Owing to the enormous influx of foreigners, many of
them objectionable characters who haunted the plazas at
night, parents and husbands found it undesirable to prome-
nade in this public fashion, and it has been almost discon-
tinued in most of the cities. When the band plays nowa-
days hi the larger towns, people of the wealthy classes ride
round the Plaza in their carriages, while the middle-class
women stay at home.

In the matter of politeness and ceremonial, all classes of
Mexicans are thoroughly Spanish. Imitation of Spain is
also noticeable in the habit of procrastination; for Mexico
is essentially the land of maiiana — to-morrow. Time is
idled away, and no man can be depended upon to turn up
at an appointed hour, punctuality being regarded as the

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 133

vice of a bore. Social calls often last hours, and the longer
you stretch them out the more polite you are deemed. The
foreigners who get on in Mexico are those who have patience
with these native customs. Hustling Americans are pre-
doomed to failure.

Mexicans of the upper class have a pretty way of telling
you that their house is yours — "Su casa es numero,"
meaning literally, " Your house is number — ," giving their
address. Of course this is a mere manner of speaking, and
must not be regarded as a serious invitation.

A story is told of a "wild Western " American who; visit-
ing the capital, was casually introduced in the street to a
Mexican senor who extended to him the formal invitation.
Later in the day, when the Mexican returned to his home,
he was amazed to find the American seated in his drawing-
room in his best chair, his feet perched on another, his
portmanteau at his side, puffing a big cigar, and at being
greeted with a boisterous, "Wai, Colonel, I've come."
History does not relate what the Mexican said or did.

Men of all classes in Mexico lift their hats on meeting,
and the laconic American how-d'ye-do is not at all to the
taste of the Mexican, who will stop to inquire of his friend
as to the health of his wife, children and household, name
by name. The poorest Indian is just as polite. I was
once fishing in a lake with a poor peon, who rowed my
boat and baited my hook. We happened to go ashore and
walked along the beach, where we met a tattered, bare-legged
Indian hauling in a net, assisted by his wife. Taking off
his battered old hat, my boatman said, "Buenas noches,
senor" (Good evening, sir). The other Indian solemnly
returned his greeting, and then with a sweep of his hat to
the woman, he said, " A los pies de usted, senora " (At your
feet, lady). The whole act was marked by a grace and
ease of manner which would have done honor to a cavalier.

134 MEXICO

The wrinkled Indian dame, despite her tattered garments,
was equal to the emergency, and with the gracious manner
of a grande dame replied, "Sus palabras, senor, son agra-
dables" (Your words, sir, are sweet to the ear). It all
meant nothing, but it was very wonderful. I asked my
Indian companion his name, and with a bow he gave it
to me, adding, "Su servidor" (Your servant). Even the
lowliest peasant will not fail to say "Con permiso" (With
your permission), if he must pass another person, even as
lowly.

All Mexicans are the slaves of habit. If anything is not
customary, it cannot be right or worth considering. Thus,
if a servant were asked to scrub the floor when her usual
duty was to cook, she would politely refuse, with the phrase,
"No es costumbre" (It is not the custom). Foreigners
in Mexico are constantly coming in conflict with their peon
servants on this point, and it is quite difficult for the Euro-
pean or American to realize that these humble servants
would far rather lose their situations than do anything,
however trivial, contrary to their established custom.

It is natural enough that the matter-of-fact, prosaic way
of the Anglo-Saxon should jar most unpleasantly on such
people. Americans of the crude, "wild Western" type
are the people who horrify the Mexicans most. They slap
the ceremonious natives on the back after a slight acquaint-
ance and interlard their conversation with strings of oaths.
Mexicans look upon men of this kind as we should regard
the average New York "tough."

A Canadian business man told me an amusing story
illustrating this point. He was calling one day, he said,
on the Jefe Politico in a Mexican town, the Jefe (pro-
nounced hay fay) being an important government official.
This particular Jefe appeared to be laboring under sup-
pressed excitement and said, at last, "You must excuse

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 135

me this morning, senor, if I am deprived of your delightful
company sooner than I wish; but I am expecting a visit
from un Americano muy distinguido (a very distinguished
American)." The slovenly sentry, marching up and down
before the official residence, seemed to think that something
important was going to happen; for he straightened him-
self up, and kept looking down the street as if to catch a
glimpse of the distinguished visitor. The Canadian delib-
erately prolonged his visit, being curious to have a look at
this wonderful person, who, he concluded, must be a Pier-
pont Morgan at least. Suddenly the door was darkened,
and a grizzled Western American, with his hat on his head,
looked in and drawled out, "Say, which of you fellows is
the'Jeffy'?"

If you express admiration for any article in a house,
the polite Mexican will take it up and say, "It is at your
disposal, senor," and insist on your accepting it. You
are, of course, supposed to refuse, firmly and politely, say-
ing, "No, no, seiior, many thanks, but it could not possibly
be in better hands. " I was told of a Western mining man,
however, who took a mean advantage of this venerable
custom.

He had done some business with a wealthy Mexican in
one of the large towns, and had spent quite a lot of money
in entertaining him, giving him dinners, taking him on
automobile drives, and giving him a trip in a private rail-
way car. The Mexican, who was extremely parsimonious,
did not return any of th^se little attentions. On the day
he was leaving, the American called at the Mexican's house,
and there saw a fine collection of golden Aztec relics which
had been dug up in that part of the country. He expressed
unbounded admiration for them. The Mexican imme-
diately summoned his man-servant and said, "Juan, the
American senor has honored me by admiring these things.

136 MEXICO

Pack them up and send them to his hotel at once." "No,
no, seiior," exclaimed the Westerner, sweeping the curios
into a bag that he carried, "don't put yourself to all that
trouble. I'll take 'em along with me right now." Forth-
with he said good-by and departed with the whole col-
lection, leaving its late owner wild with rage. A friend
of the Westerner, on hearing the story, said, "But didn't
you know that you were not supposed to accept those things
but politely refuse them ? " "Of course I knew," answered
the other, "but I wanted to get even, so I simply called his
bluff."

With the march of progress the cost of living in Mexico
is gradually becoming much higher. Ten years ago a
man with a small salary could get a house in the capital,
with four rooms and a kitchen, for $12.50 a month; but
to-day the rental of such a house ranges from $25 to $75.
Nowadays, two small rooms and a kitchen will cost at least
$12 a month, while from $60 to $100 must be paid for a
small flat or house of the better class. In like manner the
price of many foodstuffs has greatly increased. It is
true that fruit, vegetables, eggs and milk are, as a rule,
about the same price as in New York ; but meat is dear, —
at any rate, good meat, — and all imported articles are
abnormally costly. This, as already observed, is due to the
suicidally high protective tariff.

The poor of Mexico City herd together in foul tenements
in the slum districts, these dwellings, called viviendas,
being usually of one story and built round a central patio.
Two, three and even four families are often crowded to-
gether in a single room, the cheapest of these — inhabited
mostly by working people of the poorest class — costing
about a dollar and a half a month. These horrible places,
reeking with filth and infested with vermin, look more like
pig-pens than the dwelling-places of human beings. With

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 137

such conditions it is not surprising to find typhus and other
diseases extremely prevalent in the capital.

In some of the viviendas women and children sleep on
old sacking on narrow boards, which have served for tables
during the day, supported by piles of stones. The men sleep
under their blankets, which they use as cloaks in the day-
time. It is quite common for animals, dogs, cats, chickens
and sometimes even a pig or a donkey, to sleep among the
tenants of these dreadful abodes. In the centre of the patio
is a water-tank, generally filthy, from which water for drink-
ing and cooking is taken. No one living under these con-
ditions could escape typhoid.

The government is doing everything in its power to im-
prove matters, but the work is necessarily slow, as the bulk
of the poorer population of the capital are Indians, who
greatly resent any sanitary reforms. Some time ago, when
there was a serious outbreak of typhus, President Diaz
ordered that every peon in the city must take a bath at
least once a week. As the Indian masses regard water
with aversion and soap with horror, this cruel decree almost
led to riots. Police officers were compelled to go from
house to house and literally drag the protesting peons to
the public wash-houses, their victims the while struggling,
kicking and shouting furiously, " No jabon ! no jabon ! "
(No soap ! no soap !)

A better class of poor people occupy separate houses,
or rather huts, on the city's outskirts. These are usually
nothing more than wretched hovels of adobe such as are
found in the country districts, and contain hardly any
furniture. They are generally surrounded with a broken-
down stone wall and a hedge of tall, straight cactus. The
tenants spend most of their time outside their doors, and
the women can be seen making tortillas and doing the
family cooking on a crude stove at the threshold.

138 MEXICO

The fact that Mexico is a land of startling contrasts can
nowhere be seen more perfectly than in the capital, where
almost in a street's length there are the strangest transitions
from civilization to barbarism. I stood in San Francisco
Street one evening, among the brilliantly lighted shops,
watching the procession of carriages with their fashionable
occupants going by, noticing, on every side, the signs of
modern luxury and progress. From this lively scene a
walk of less than a mile in the direction of Guadalupe took
me to a quiet road lined with adobe huts, with all the char-
acteristics of Indian life, much the same as it was when
Cortes landed. Unkempt Indian women were patting
tortillas behind the cactus hedge, and half-naked children
frolicked among the goats and pigs. Along the road came
a train of burros laden with wood, fruit and vegetables for
the market, driven by ragged Indians in their red blankets.
There was nothing to remind me that I was so near a great
modern city until suddenly a big automobile came whizzing
along the road, its horn tooting gayly, and I was recalled
to the present age.

From Indian huts to city restaurants is a sudden tran-
sition, but being typical of life in Mexico, it may serve as
an excuse for the devoting of a few words at this point to
the all-important subject of eating and drinking. This is
a subject, in fact, in which the average man in the Mexican
capital is keenly interested, for while there are a legion of
restaurants there, very few of them are really good, either
in regard to cooking or service. The best are a combina-
tion of French, Spanish and Italian establishments, and the
charges are not exorbitant. Most of them are housed in
dingy buildings, and have no external attractions for the
diner. In this respect nothing could be more marked than
the difference between Mexican cities and those of other
countries, for, with the sole exception of the Chapultepec

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 139

Cafe*, there are none of those very ornate establishments
which so largely add to the charm of dining out in most
lands. The average Mexican restaurant is, in fact, very
inferior. A foreign visitor gives first one and then another
a trial, returning to the first in despair, after he had sworn
never to darken its doors again. Many men of moderate
means whom I met appeared to be like de Soto in his vain
search for treasure, forever seeking, but never finding, a
decent meal.

Of the few restaurants where the cooking can be relied
upon, the best are the Cafe de Paris, the Cafe de la Paix,
Sylvain's and the Cafe Chapultepec. In all these the cooks
are French, and one can order a dish with a quiet mind and
the certainty that it will be eatable. The menu cards are
usually Spanish, though some restaurant proprietors, as
I have said, attempt English translations. In most of the
large establishments, too, the head waiters usually speak
English.

If a stranger is content to embark on a course of Mexican
food and can stomach the highly seasoned dishes, filled with
chilis and red peppers, he can get satisfactory meals at the
Mexican restaurants, for some of the things which are served
are piquant and excellent. But he must beware, for the
dishes have a nomenclature all their own, and one can
blunder badly. Therefore, unless the head waiter can ex-
plain the composition of the various strange dishes, the
uninitiated guest is in danger of being served with some very
unappetizing messes, reeking with grease and filled with red
peppers, chilis and other fiery condiments.

Of the foods most popular among Mexicans mention
must be made of chili-con-carne (chilis with minced meat),
which is very palatable, although hot. Tamales, another
favorite dish, are made of chopped meat, highly seasoned
with pepper and chilis, wrapped in a corn husk and boiled

140 MEXICO

»

quickly. Sometimes a tortilla is used as a wrapping, and
the tamale is cooked in boiling fat. Enchiladas are some-
thing like tamales, but are seasoned with Mexican cheese
and onions and soaked in chili sauce. The native bread,
tortilla, has already been described. Frijoles (par excel-
lence the Mexican national dish), a vegetable equivalent
to the roast beef of old England, are black beans boiled,
then fried in lard and served reeking with grease. As such
cooking is quite unsuited for a hot climate, it is not sur-
prising to find that diseases of the stomach and liver are
almost universal among Mexicans. At the cost of a few
cents, enough frijoles can be bought to feed a family for a
day. Few householders furnish their servants with any
other food than tortillas and frijoles.

Eggs (huevos) in various forms are served at every meal,
a plain omelette being called a tortilla natural or tortilla
de huevos. Cocidas are a concoction of potatoes chopped
in small pieces, beetroot, carrots, small pieces of meat,
maize and cauliflower, all boiled together. A salad of cold
sliced tongue, chopped olives, celery and lettuce, with
mayonnaise dressing, is very popular. Stewed or roast
chicken served with rice, highly seasoned, called arroz con
polio, figures on every bill of fare.

Roast beef is served in every style, always with some
highly seasoned sauce, and is sometimes actually smothered
with raisins. The meats, as a rule, are fresh, but generally
stringy and tough, due to the fact that the grazing is poor,
and that meat, on account of the heat, must be eaten very
fresh. The same quality is noticeable in the poultry, which
is always tough, as it is never allowed to hang long enough.
In cutting up meat the butchers never disjoint the carcasses,
but cut the flesh off in strips.

Fresh vegetables are not obtainable in Mexican hotels
and restaurants as largely as they ought to be, and during

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 141

the winter season American and French canned vegetables
are chiefly used. There is no excuse for this, as vegetables
of all kinds can be grown the year round in most parts of
Mexico. On the other hand, fresh fruits are plentiful,
such as apples and peaches from the temperate zone, and
pineapples, oranges and bananas from the hot country.
One of the most interesting fruits is the aguacate, which
resembles an enormous green pear, the inside of which isf
like butter, is almost tasteless, and is frequently used as?
a natural salad dressing.

Bread and rolls are invariably good. The native butter
is usually uncolored and unsalted and has very little flavor,
but is only served in the best establishments, American
butter or oleomargarine being more extensively used.
Milk, as a rule, is rather poor and watery, but an excellent
cream cheese is made in some parts of the country.

There are very few native drinks which are palatable
to foreigners. The ill-tasting pulque is not drunk by the
better-class Mexicans or served in the restaurants. French,
Italian and Spanish wines and German beers can be had
at most of the better-class establishments, and here and
there the order "Cerveza de Milwaukee" will be under-
stood. Some very fair light lager beer, brewed by German
firms at Monterey and Toluca, is a very popular drink.
There are also several native mineral waters, of which the
best known is Topo Chico, derived from a spring of the same
name near Monterey. The indolence of the Mexicans is
solely to blame for their having no native wines, for excel-
lent grapes will grow well all over the country. This is
another instance of the Mexican being governed by habit.
Wine-making was prohibited by the Spaniards in the in-
terests of the wines imported from the mother country,
and as the Mexican has not made wine for four hundred
years, he cannot see why he should begin now.

142 MEXICO

Of course, all Mexicans love coffee, but as a rule the coffee
grown and served in Mexico is very strong, with a drug-
like bitterness, partly due to the bean being too much
roasted.

Service in Mexican restaurants is almost as unsatisfactory
as the food. The waiters, mostly swarthy Indians, dressed
in the conventional waiting dress, frequently present an
amusing resemblance to opera-bouffe brigands, and seem
quite out of their element. Very few of them know any
English, and unless a person speaks Spanish very well,
they do not understand him. From my experiences, I
became convinced that most of the Mexican waiters were
recruited from institutions for the feeble-minded. If,
for instance, I ordered a steak or any other dish which took
a little time to cook, and wanted soup to precede it, the
waiter, instead of serving the soup just before the steak,
would rush off and bring the soup immediately. Twenty
minutes later, when my appetite was all destroyed by the
soup, he would appear with the rest of the meal. I tried
in vain to induce the waiters to do otherwise, or even to
serve the two courses together ; but they merely shrugged
their shoulders and murmured, "No, senor, no es costum-
bre" (No, sir, it is not the custom).

If you are in a hurry to catch a train, and implore the
waiter to be quick, he puts his thumb and forefinger gin-
gerly together and says, "Un momento, senor/' as if a
moment were a fragile piece of spun-glass and he was afraid
of breaking it. Then the swarthy villain strolls off and dis-
appears for nearly an hour. That is costumbre.

But vengeance sometimes follows fast on the laggard
footsteps of the Mexican waiter and turns his little comedy
into an unexpected tragedy. Even while I was in the cap-
ital, the always reliable Mexican Herald published the fol-
lowing item in its news columns : —

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 143

" In the Maison de la Providencia, at Toluca, yesterday,
a hungry guest shot Margarito Lopez, a waiter of the estab-
lishment, through the hand, because the waiter did not
answer his call promptly. "

This little gem of journalism is a fitting introduction to
the subject of newspaper enterprise in Mexico, which is
much older than the stranger visiting the country would
at first sight believe. The first newspaper indeed was
printed as long ago as 1693, and was known as El Mer curio
Volante or Flying Mercury. Thenceforward other news-
papers were founded, but they were always entirely under
the thumb of the government, and the numbers of their
readers was so small that they had no power in shaping
policies for years after Mexican independence had been
declared. To-day there are many newspapers and period-
icals of all kinds published in Mexico City. There is, how-
ever, no Mexican yellow press, as a Mexican journalist would
never dream of trespassing upon the privacy of a family
to get copy.

When General Diaz became President thirty years ago,
such newspapers as flourished then were fairly uncontrolled
in their political criticisms. They appealed to the people
much as do the French radical newspapers, and many revo-
lutions were due to their turbulent editorials. President
Diaz found these journals a considerable obstacle to the
establishment of law and order. By his direction, some of
the most mischief-making of the editors were arrested and
lodged in Belem Prison, a jail reserved for the lowest type
of criminals. After a week of solitary confinement and a
diet of bread and water, they were brought before the
President. "Now, gentlemen," said he, "what do you
think of my government?" "Senor President e," they
replied, "we think it is the finest government on the face
of the earth." "Just continue to think so, gentlemen," said

144 MEXICO

the President, "and we shall get along splendidly." As
the editors wisely kept on "thinking so," there was no fur-
ther trouble.

To-day the libel laws are very severe, and the govern-

Iment is keen in suppressing political criticism in the press.

/The editors, also having a wholesome fear of Belem Prison,

/ restrict their comments to the most respectful choruses of

j approval. Most of them are subsidized by the government,

| so that the President and his cabinet have little fear

j that the obsequious gentlemen of the pen will lessen their

own incomes by rash words.

The modern Mexican newspapers have a necessarily small
circulation, for the amount of illiteracy in the country is
appalling. Of the fourteen millions of population, over
sixty per cent are still unable to read or write. Chief
among the daily papers is El Impartial, which might be
called the Times of Mexico, but although it is the official
organ of the government, its circulation does not exceed
a hundred thousand, including the whole of the Republic.
It is a fairly good paper, considering the monopoly it has
long possessed, its editor being an influential member of
Congress. An afternoon edition of El Impartial is pub-
lished, called El Heraldo. Both papers, though printed in
Spanish, are in the matter of head-lines and illustrations
much Americanized and quite up-to-date. But strangely
enough, though copying the methods of the press of the
United States, El Impartial is anti-American in tone and
vehemently maintains the patriotic doctrine of "Mexico
for the Mexicans."

Next to El Impartial in circulation is El Diario, a bright
Spanish daily started in 1906 by Messrs. Simondetti and
Fornaro, able Italian journalists with American training.
El Diario might be called the New York Journal of Mexico,
having some tendency to the sensational. It evidently

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 145

pleases the Mexicans, for it already has a large and rapidly
increasing circulation. This paper has big head-lines, often
in red ink, and its illustrations and cartoons bear some
resemblance to those of Mr. Hearst's newspaper.

While I was in Mexico City, El Diario was waging war
against the local tramway company whose cars were con-
stantly running over unfortunate peons and killing or maim-
ing them. Every morning its front page contained a list
of the victims, and articles bitterly denouncing the tramway
management. These were accompanied with sensational
cartoons with lots of red ink in them, bearing such cheerful
titles as "A Vintage of Blood," "A Carnival of Gore."

Other papers published in the capital are El Pais, a
Catholic journal, El Popular, La P atria, and Los Sucesos
(Events) . La Patria is a very old Liberal Party paper. El
Tiempo is the leading Catholic or conservative publication,
and circulates all over the Republic. There are also a
number of weekly and monthly periodicals issued in Mexico,
including magazines, literary reviews and various trade
and financial journals.

Two daily papers in English are published in the capital,
the Mexican Herald and the Evening Record, owned
and edited by Americans. They are read by the English-
speaking population all over Mexico and by an ever increas-
ing number of Mexicans who understand English. The
Herald is edited by Mr. Frederick Guernsey, formerly of
Boston, a very able journalist, who has lived in Mexico
nearly thirty years.

In Guadalajara, Guanajuato, Oaxaca and some other
cities with a large English-speaking population, Americans
have started weekly newspapers in English. In Monterey
there is quite an important American daily. Outside of the
capital, however, most of the Spanish-printed newspapers
are very insignificant one-sheet affairs. The best paper

146 MEXICO

published in Vera Cruz, for instance, would not bear com-
parison with some of our American country weeklies.

In the smaller towns the Mexican editors all show a great
lack of enterprise, rarely publishing any bright local news,
and not hesitating to print intelligence that is at least a week
old. An amusing reason for this was given to a friend of
mine by the editor of a Mexican weekly. "Good news,"
he said, "is like good wine; it improves with age. It is
always better to hold news over for a week. If it is true,
we shall get more facts ; and if it proves to be false, why
should we print it?"

The Mexican press is much hampered by a high protec-
tive duty on paper. Some members of the government
are interested in a paper mill, which probably accounts for
a policy which forces publishers to use Mexican paper.

Several of the more important American newspapers
have correspondents in Mexico City, and one or two English
newspapers are represented. The Associated Press of the
United States also has an office and a daily telegraphic
service.

The growth of the press in Mexico has been greatly as-
sisted by the wonderful railway development which has
taken place during the past twenty years. In the old days
the circulation of newspapers was almost entirely local, but
to-day El Impartial, El Diario, the Mexican Herald and
other city papers, thanks to quick delivery, are read in all
parts of the country. Even twenty years ago, Mexicans
did a great deal of their travelling in slow, lumbering old
k stage-coaches, while to-day there are over thirty railways
i in Mexico, with a total mileage of fourteen thousand.

Most of the Mexican lines have been built with the as-
}' sistance of government subsidies averaging from ten to
) fifteen thousand dollars per mile, provisional on the rail-
way becoming the property of the state, at a fair valuation,

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 147

after ninety-nine years. Of the railways now in operation
the two most important are the Mexican Central and the
Mexican National, which run through the centre of Mexico
from the United States boundary and have many branches.
Each year new lines are laid down, and the railway commu-
nication between ports on the Gulf and Pacific coasts is
being constantly increased. The policy of the government
being to obtain a controlling interest in all railway under-
takings, they have lately purchased control of the Mexican
National, and are now to obtain a predominating voice
in the Mexican Central, which will be an important step
towards the scheme of nationalization of railways at which
Mexican statesmen are aiming. It is noteworthy that the
lines to which the Mexican authorities are devoting their
attention are those which are American-owned, while the
two English lines, the Mexican Railway and the Mexican
Southern, have so far escaped official attention. No doubt
the Mexican government fears that the great trunk railways
of the United States would in time absorb the Mexican lines,
and by extortionate rates and other trust evils seriously
impede Mexican progress.

Heretofore the personnel of the National and Central
railways have been almost entirely Americans; but the •
Mexican government is dismissing the foreigners wherever •;
possible and putting Mexicans in their places. A some-
what tyrannical decree which was recently issued, that every
American employee must acquire a working knowledge
of Spanish in six months or lose his place, shows pretty
clearly what the Mexican policy is. This decree applies to
all railway employees except the managers and clerks.

Except in the capital, Mexican railway stations are
usually built some distance from the towns, so that cabs
or street-cars have to be used to reach homes or hotels.
This was done to avoid the purchase of expensive rights of

148 MEXICO

£ .

way. The Mexican Central and Mexican National rail-
ways run fine vestibule trains between Mexico and the
United States, with connections which enable one to make
the journey from the Mexican capital to New York in less
than five days.

Railway enterprise is doing much to change Mexico.
The centres of population have always been on the great
plateaus of the interior, the coasts being very sparsely
inhabited. Until recent years, communication with the
ports, except Vera Cruz and Tampico, was by rough moun-
tain trails. Transportation of goods was slow and expen-
sive and necessitated pack-mules, donkeys and armies of
cargadores. Since railway development began, even min-
ing has become of secondary importance compared with
the great increase in commerce and manufacture and the
impetus which agriculture has received.

Another important fact is that the railway extensions
have greatly diminished the chances of successful revolution.
In the old days it took so long to travel from the capital
to any of the big provincial centres that revolutions might
be brought to a successful issue before any considerable
body of government troops could arrive. All this is changed
now, as with the aid of railways, telegraphs and telephones
troops can be concentrated at any place by special train at
a few hours' notice. With such a strong government as
Mexico at present possesses, there is consequently little
chance of a revolution succeeding, even temporarily.

The awakening of Mexico, with the advancement of her
press and the development of her railways, has been ac-
companied by wonderful progress in public education.
Much has been done of late under the educational system
inaugurated by President Diaz in 1876, and at the present
time even the smallest town has its public schools. There
are to-day in these schools over eight hundred thousand

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 149

scholars, while upwards of one hundred thousand pupils i
are attending private schools, institutions supported byf
the clergy, or those of a private nature. Education is
compulsory, though there are great difficulties in enforcing
the law. In the primary schools, where boys and girls
are separately educated, the three r's are taught, and in
many cases instruction in the English language is given, •
so that in a few years Mexico will tend to become an Eng-
lish-speaking country. In passing a Mexican public school
one hears a strange buzzing like bees, the custom being
for the children to sing their lessons in chorus.

In Mexico City the national government maintains the
following institutions: Academy of Fine Arts, School of
Civil Engineering, School of Medicine, Law School, Academy
of Commerce, Academy of Arts and Trades, Conservatory
of Music, Military College, School of Mines, and schools
for the deaf, dumb, and blind. There are seventy-two j
public libraries in the country, the National Library in the <
capital containing over two hundred and sixty-five thou-
sand volumes.

In the army and the prisons there is also a system of
compulsory education, strict attendance at the classes being
enforced. The soldiers are for the most part Indians, and
when they join the ranks are almost without exception
illiterate. They are given instruction in reading, writing,
arithmetic, natural science, history, drawing and singing.
This applies equally to the jails, where, if a prisoner is ear-
nest in his study, he can eventually win his freedom. The
Indians, as a rule, are bright and quick to learn. Op-
pressed and enslaved for centuries, they had little chance
to show what was in them ; the twentieth century has now
given them their opportunity. The supreme importance
of education among the masses was clearly recoj
by President Diaz, who, in speaking of the Mexico

150 MEXICO

system, tersely said : " I have started a free school for boys
and girls in'every community in the Republic. We regard
education as the foundation of our prosperity and the basis
of our very existence. We have learned from Japan, what
indeed we knew before, but did not realize quite clearly,
that education is the one thing needful to a people."

The spread of education among the masses of Mexico is
destined to have an important effect in shaping the future
of the Roman Catholic Church within the borders of the
Republic, where it is still a power. A wonderful history
is that of the church in Mexico, dating as it does from the
Spanish Conquest, when missionary priests marched with the
soldiers of Corte*s and spread the teachings of Christianity
among the conquered race. Once subdued, the Indians
took kindly enough to the new religion, their cordial recep-
tion of it being strengthened by the shrewdness of the priests
in blending the ritual of the new and old faiths. Aztec
gods were cleverly metamorphosed into Christian saints,
keeping many of their pagan characteristics. Thus the
Goddess of the Rains is recognizable in our Lady of the
Mists, to whom prayers for rain are often offered in true
pagan fashion. Catholic churches were generally built on
the sites of Aztec temples. Mexican Catholicism has indeed
ever been marked by a strong tendency to idolatry, and
Catholic clerics have noticed and denounced this straying
from the forms of Holy Church. In some parts of Mexico
pagan practices are still kept up, such as the dances in front
of the church, while the offerings of fruit and even lambs
and chickens at wayside shrines are also fairly common.
The priests are unable to stop these survivals of paganism.

Less than a century back the church was all-powerful
in Mexico, and its wealth was estimated at close on two
hundred million dollars. It has even been estimated as high
as five hundred millions. Gifts and bequests were made to

THE LIFE OF THE PEOPLE 151

it by rich and poor alike, and the best part of the farm lands
in the country belonged to it. The church threw all its
weight into the scale against progress, and it was the abuse
of its power which brought about in 1864 its disestablish-
ment. President Juarez was no man for half measures,
and under his government's decree church lands were seized,
monasteries and nunneries suppressed, the priests were
forbidden to walk in the streets in clerical dress and all
religious processions were voted illegal. Marriage was made
a civil contract, and in addition to losing this source of its
revenue much of the church plate and the interior adorn-
ments were looted and sold as old metal.

Even at the present time, though of course looting is
out of fashion, church property is still threatened. Quite
recently the Mexican government has notified the bishops
throughout Mexico that all church property and fittings {
belong to the state, and that under no circumstances what- \
ever have the priests the right to part with any article. I
The ostensible ground for this decree is said to have been
the purchase of some ancient silver altar candelabra by an
American millionaire. The Mexican authorities, hearing
of this, prohibited the removal of the candlesticks. But
the church sees in this latest move something far more
serious than an attempt to restrain globe-trotters from
filling their trunks with souvenirs of their travels. The
church is probably right.

Still the hold of Catholicism on the bulk of the Mexicans
is very firm, and during the past half century it may be
said to have regained some of the power lost immediately
after the disestablishment. The influence of the priests is
almost unlimited, and there are many cases of their grossly
violating the laws of the land. Women are the stoutest
adherents of the priestly lawbreakers, the Mexican men
seldom troubling themselves about church matters.

152 MEXICO

Though the ringing of church bells is regulated by law,
they clang away discordantly all day long; the priests
openly appear in distinctive cloaks ; and the villagers will
often raise money to pay a heavy fine rather than be de-
prived of their religious processions through the streets.
/ Slowly the church is once more acquiring much land.
When a rich Mexican lies dying, he must restore any church
property that he has become possessed of, or the priests
will refuse him extreme unction. To defeat the law, the
property is placed in the hands of a trustee. In the same
way the law regarding marriage is disobeyed, the clergy
teaching the people that the ceremony in the church is all
that is needed. Thus the church has recaptured one of the
most profitable of her sources of revenue, for the priests v*
think nothing of charging the peons five dollars as a mar-
riage fee, and the charge was recently as high as fifteen
dollars, a sum entirely beyond the means of the ordinary
Indian laborer. In consequence of these heavy charges,
thousands of couples remained unmarried. While I was
in the Sierras, a Jesuit priest came to a village and mar-
ried, at greatly reduced rates, a large number of natives
who had been living together for years unmarried, as they
were too poor to pay the fees. Many of them had grown-up J

V children.
Yet despite all this, one must not condemn Mexican Ca-
tholicism too bitterly ; for there are many among the priests
who are entitled to be called patriotic and progressive men,
who struggle to abate existing evils and improve the con-
dition of the masses. The saying in regard to the sins of
. the fathers is well exemplified in Mexico, where the priests,
I however well-meaning, do suffer and are likely to go on ,suf-
» fering for the gross sins and abuses of their predecessors.

Under Mexican law there is complete religious toleration,
Baptists, Methodists, and other Protestant sects being per-

THE LIFE OF

mitted to carry on an activ

THE PEOPLE 153

propaganda throughout the

Republic. Still Protestantitn makes but little headway,
and there are said to be bu| twenty-five thousand of its >
followers throughout the c0untry. In Mexico City the
Methodists, Baptists and other sects have their own pub-
lishing houses and produceha good deal of literature in
Spanish. Christian Science^i^ also making some progress.
There are in the capital several Protestant churches whose
pastors conduct services in Spanish and English, and there
are the usual Sunday-schools and mission meetings. The
Salvation Army alone is barred by ^reason of its proces-
sions and distinctive dress. In bigotecj! parts of Mexico
Protestant preaching has at times provoked fierce attacks,
and native converts have been the victims of terrible and
often fatal assaults.

President Diaz was always keen on religious tolera-
tion. His views on this subject were clearly and eloquently
expressed in an address to some Protestant missionaries
a few years ago, when he said : "I have seen this land as
none of you ever saw it, in degradation, with everything
in the line of toleration and freedom to learn. I have
watched its rise and progress to a better condition. We
are not yet all we ought to be and hope to be, but we have
risen as a people, and are now rising faster than ever. Do
not be discouraged. Keep on with your work, avoiding
topics of irritation and preaching the Gospel in its own
spirit.'^ Such an utterance from such a man proved that
toleration has certainly dawned in Mexico. Official rec-
ognition had been freely given to Protestant missionary
effort. Vice-President Corral was honorary president of
the Mexican Y. M. C. A., and President Diaz occasionally
attended its meetings. He and his cabinet were also
..present at special memorial services in the Presbyterian
churches. Less than a generation ago this would have been

/tri.

154 MEXICO

impossible, and such an action by a president would have
invited assassination.

The extent of the power still wielded in Mexico by the
ancient church is strikingly shown in the burial of the dead,
the majority of funerals being conducted with Catholic
rites. A number of curious burial customs also exist, some
of which are due to racial and climatic reasons, while others
have undoubtedly originated in churchly tradition.

In Mexico, as in all other tropical countries, a body must
be buried within twenty-four hours after death. This
necessarily entails much haste and worry on the part of
the bereaved ones, at a time when they are least able to
bear it. Haste being thus a prerequisite, coffins are in-
variably purchased ready-made, and in accordance with
the general custom, corpses are dressed in their best clothes,
a dress suit in the case of a gentleman, while a lady is
arrayed in her finest evening gown. A few of the old
families, however, still adhere to a more venerable Mexican
custom of dressing the dead as nuns and friars.

In Mexico City, and some of the other large towns, the
cemeteries being some distance out, hearses and mourning
coaches are not used at funerals, but the coffins of rich and
poor are conveyed in funeral street-cars as described in a
preceding chapter. The mourners are always men, as ladies
in Mexico do not follow funerals. A brief service is there-
fore read at the house of the bereaved family, a few con-
cluding rites being observed at the cemetery. Instead of
being screwed down, the coffin is provided with a lock, and
before being lowered into the grave the lid is lifted, so that
an official of the cemetery, who is present, can be con-
vinced that the coffin contains a corpse and have it formally
identified. The coffin is then locked, deposited in the grave
and the key handed to the chief mourner.

In most parts of Mexico burial plots in the cemeteries

j

THE LIFE 'OF THE PEOPLE 155

are usually leased for a term of years. At the expiration
of the time, unless the lease is renewed, the bones are ex-
humed and thrown into a charnel house. The cemeteries
are little visited except on All §gi^^ Day, when friends
and relations flock to them with wreaths, crosses and bou-
quets of flowers to decorate the graves. Death feasts are
also held in the cemetery on this day, tables being arranged
near the graves and loaded with eatables which have some
ghastly reference to mortality, such as cakes or sweets fi-
representing skulls and cross-bones, while a real skull and
a bowl of holy water are set in the midst of these grewsome
dainties.

Whenever a death occurs among the poor, a kind of
Irish wake is held by the family and friends, in which there
is much drinking of pulque and singing and dancing. The
corpse is never left alone for a moment, for fear that evil
spirits might tamper with it. Following the custom of
their Aztec ancestors, the Indians still place corn, and some-
times other edibles, in the coffins in order that the dead may
have food to sustain them on their long journey to the land
of spirits. For poor funerals, coffins are frequently hired
for the day, the body being simply conveyed in it to the
cemetery, the coffin being afterwards returned to the under-
taker.

An interesting religious custom is observed in Mexico
in the months of January and February. It is known as v
the "blessing of the animals/' and takes place in connection \
with the Feast of St. Anthony. On the appointed day, the
people congregate in the churchyard, driving with them
their household pets and other animals, all of which are
decorated for the occasion. At one of these services,
which I witnessed near the city, there were cows, burros,
sheep and mules, painted and trimmed in various vivid
hues. There were green sheep, pink goats and blue pigs,

156 MEXICO

horses covered with scarlet and gold paper stars tied with
bands and bows of flaming ribbons. Women brought their
parrots and canaries in their cages, while turkeys, geese and
old hens were carried in, all adorned with ribbons of gay
colors. When the church bell sounded, a priest appeared
in the porch, and the people made a rush for the door,
driving or holding up their various beasts and birds to
catch a drop of the holy water which was sprinkled.

Another remarkable^Si^S^ celebration takes place on
Easter Saturday, when**paper-mache* effigies of Judas
Iscariot are hung along the streets, ranging from little
figures to some which are almost life size. Each figure is
filled with explosives and has a fuse attached to it. These
are exploded in all directions until the noise is deafening.
Some of the figures bear such mottos as, "I am the Devil's
son," "Blow me to Inferno." Everybody considers it his
duty to blow up a Judas.

CHAPTER VIII

THE MEXICAN WOMAN

A GOOD idea of the difference between the status of
American and Mexican women could be obtained by com-
paring a photograph taken at midday in Fifth Avenue,
New York, with one taken at the same hour in Calle San
Francisco, Mexico City. In the New York view there
would perhaps be more women than men, whereas in the
Mexican scene, so far as the white element is concerned,
there would be comparatively few. This is noticeable, in
fact, wherever one goes in Mexico, for among all classes
of Mexicans, except the Indians, women are kept more
strictly secluded than even in Spain. There is, at present,
no strictly defined Mexican middle class; but both the
upper class and what would be equivalent to the minor
business classes in this country are rather Moorish than
European in their treatment of the fair sex.

Girls of the higher class, in taking their walks abroad,
are still guarded by watchful duennas, and until recently
women of high society rarely took a drive in an open car-
riage. To such an extent, in fact, was this exclusion carried
in former days that some of the grande dames, when shop-
ing, did not leave their carriages, but had the salesmen bring
the goods to the door.

These severe restrictions as to women showing them-
selves in public brought about in Spain and Mexico the
use of the windows and balconies so characteristic of the
two countries. This is almost the only way in which the

157

158 MEXICO

seiioras and senoritas can, with due regard to propriety,
take the air ; and thus in the cool of the evening they can
be seen sitting like prisoners, peering out through the iron-
barred windows at the carriages and passers-by, and perhaps
nodding to friends.

With its bolts and bars, real and figurative, the Mexican
perhaps cannot claim that the word "home," in the Ameri-
can and English sense, has any real meaning for him ; but
his house is in very fact his castle, and he guards it from
the inquisitive with the precautions of a tyrant. As in
Spain, the Mexican father of the upper classes is an ab-
solute lord and master, and to him all are subservient, even
the grown-up children being expected to show obedience
in matters in which an American father would never dream
of interfering. Marriage without the consent of parents is,
for instance, quite unknown.

But even with the strong discipline that prevails in the
Mexican household, families are not always united; there
are the usual quarrels, which in a climate where the blood
is hot have led on occasions to serious brawls and duels in
which lives have been lost. A disturbing element is per-
haps the fact that among the upper classes it is common
for a number of kinsfolk to occupy the huge old-fashioned
family mansion. An uncle or two, an aunt, a few cousins
and sometimes actually two mothers-in-law are added to
the family circle and dwell together under the same roof.
There is consequently bound to be more or less friction;
and that so many families can live peacefully together under
such trying conditions is certainly proof of much patience
and good nature. Between husband and wife, for whom
when they differ there is no divorce, there may exist for
years a complete estrangement; but the world will know
little of it, for they will go on living in the same house,
although they may never exchange a word.

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 159

So hide-bound are the rules which govern Mexican home
life that even the most cultured and charming foreigners,
resident for years in the country, have never penetrated
into the houses of the wealthier Mexicans. No foreigner,
unless he be associated with diplomacy, is likely to have
any chance of studying and judging the Mexican women,
so complete is what amounts to a true harem system.

As a rule, the Mexican women are not beautiful. They
are generally of medium height and slight build when young ;
though as they progress in years they tend to obesity.
Their skin is of an olive tint and their complexions are
usually bad, probably on account of the lack of exercise.
They are much addicted to the use of powder, which is laid
on very thickly, and their lips are often rouged. Mexican
beauties may be divided into two classes : the slight, deli-
cate girl with big, soft black eyes, and features somewhat
suggestive of the Madonna type ; and a stout, voluptuous
young woman, — a sort of Spanish dancing-girl type, —
with bold, flashing black eyes.

The free life lived by young American and English women
is utterly unknown in Mexico. Girls are watched keenly
by their mothers, who scarcely ever allow them out of their
sight, save in the custody of some old woman-servant or
other trusty retainer. Mexican women have no sympathy
with the suffragette movement; they do not want votes,
and take no interest whatever in public affairs. The whole
question of women's rights is tabooed, and all innovations
in the household are looked at askance.

The contrast between the lives of these dark beauties
and those of their fairer Northern sisters is perhaps best
realized from the fact that no Mexican girl of even the
middle class would be permitted to have a young man call to
see her or be her escort to the theatre. A Mexican mother
would probably have a fit if such an idea were suggested

I

160 MEXICO

to her. In her estimation, no man is safe until he is married,
atid even then he will bear close watching. Doubtless this
lac\ of freedom is the reason for the Mexican senoritas
gaining the name of coquettes ; it is their ^ay of rebelling.
But while there is so much outward show of restraint and
so much parade of the modest and retiring virgin about the
Mexican girl's home life, there is anoth/r side to the picture
which is apt to jar on the Anglo-Saxon woman. Even
Mexican women of the highest classes will permit them-
selves to talk among their friends or with their servant-
girls in a manner which woultybe regarded as shameful
among Americans. If the lat^r show their astonishment,
the Mexican woman, with 2/ laugh, will accuse them of
having false modesty.

Mexicans are pkssionatj/ admirers of the fair sex, and
susceptible young Sallows who see an attractive girl with
her duenna will offten/iollow her, uttering such compli-
mentary phrases as,/^0jos bellos" (Beautiful eyes) or
"Bella creatura " (/'Beautiful creature"), "Ah, hermosa
rubia" ("Ah, lovely blonde"), "Charming brunette."
Some of the gipls titter and seem to like it. American
girls, on the p6ntrary, do not appreciate these Mexican
compliments*/ A lagartijo or "masher," who followed one
strong-minded Yankee girl, giving utterance to his ex-
pressions OT admiration, was rewarded with some swinging
blows on his head from the umbrella she carried. In
love affairs, by the way, there 4s a peculiar slang
hus a girl or boy jilted is called a calabaza, mean-
dried, empty gourd ; old maids &£ solteronas ;
men are gallinos — young roosters.
A Revere critic of Mexico has described it as a land where
flowers have no perfume, men no honor and womVi no
virtue. Americans and Englishmen who have lived there
generally report that the whole race of Mexicans are grossly

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 161

immoral, Doubtless there is a great (leal of exaggeration
in these "Strictures. Such judgment^ have been formed
largely fromxaippearances, and, whjere it is so difficult for
a foreigner to come into close tou^h with the intimate life
of a people, it is surely only ri^nt for him to hesitate be-
fore launching general indictments against them. There is
no doubt much laxness in morals. The Mexican husband
watches his wife as a cat does a mouse, yet very often she
deceives him. All Mexicati men are said to be unfaithful,
and it is almost expected of any one who has the means, to
keep two households dt least. When an American friend
of mine, who lives Jit Mexico, was recently making his will,
his Mexican lawyer asked him if he had any children at
home. "No/yiie replied, "I have none/' whereupon the
lawyer, witlx^i quizzical look, asked, "Well, don't you have
any other/ 'household?" putting the question as a niatter
of course'. It is this very different point of view which
make^ mixed marriages in Mexico almost invariably failures.
The American girl or her English cousin who mates with
a Mexican generally lives to repent it. In the same way,
the marriages of Englishmen or Americans with Mexican
women are generally failures.

Under the system of seclusion of which she is the victim,
the Mexican girl has but two things in life to occupy her,
love and religion. The classical Spanish picture of the
maiden at the barred window or leaning, Juliet-like, from
a balcony, while her sweetheart thrums music to her on his
mandolin or guitar, is reproduced every evening in Mexico.
Courtship is a delightfully difficult pursuit. A young man
will, by chance, meet a girl in the street or on the plaza.
Her languishing black eyes will haunt him and, having
followed her home, he must content himself for days and
weeks with watching the house. He has reached the stage
which is known as "Hacer el oso" (to play the bear), a

162 MEXICO

phrase in comic allusion to his lovesick pacing up and down
under the adored one's window as a bear walks backwards
and forwards in his cage hour after hour. Now comes the
girl's turn. Safe behind her curtain, or in the darkness of
her balcony, she can make her coquettish little mind up
whether he is quite the kind of bear she wants. If he is,
she finds a dozen ways of encouraging him ; a smile, a wave
of the hand, a suspicion of the blowing of a kiss are enough
to make the bear happy. When she goes to mass or walks
in the plaza, the faithful bear follows her, and although
they cannot exchange a word, they can find happiness in
looks.

Sometimes a flirtation of this kind reaches the love-letter
stage, servants or tradesmen who call at the house being
bribed to deliver the billets-doux, or perhaps the missives
are fished up by the amorous young lady with a string from
the balcony. This is the moment when fate must decide
whether or not the course of true love is to run smooth.
If the parents disapprove, the unfortunate bear will soon
know ; for the girl will be shut up either at home or in a
convent to save her from his attentions. If, however, the
bear is an eligible party, the parents do not interfere in the
rather puerile course the love affair takes. For, having
so far advanced, etiquette permits the girl to talk to her
bear from the balcony or through the grille of her window ;
and the moonlight nights are devoted to the pouring of
sweet nothings into each other's ear. The patient bears
are frequently content that this nonsense should last for
years, and even then a bear may lose his prize.

Bears are very jealous creatures, at least these Mexican
bears are, and they will disguise themselves as mozos or
peons and watch their fair one's window to see if another
bear is in the running. An English friend of mine who
lives in an old Mexican town witnessed an amusing instance

"PLAYING THE BEAR."
A popular feature of Mexican courtship.

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 163

of this not long ago. A young Englishman who happened
to be visiting him was very fond of listening to the music
in the plaza and watching the people. One evening when
he was out with my friend, he remarked, "I've found a
ripping place to sit and smoke my pipe and listen to the band.
I've been sitting in that old alcove window over there
nearly every night. It's just off the plaza, and you can
sit there and hear the music without getting in the crowd.
Let's go over and sit down." They took a seat on the
window ledge, and had been there only a few minutes when
a red rose was thrown to them from an upper window.
At the same moment they caught sight of a rather shabby-
looking Mexican on the opposite side of the street, who
looked up at the window, shook his fist and seemed to be
in a great rage. He beckoned to another Mexican, who
came up and spoke excitedly in Spanish. The English-
men heard such words as "traidora" (traitress), "falsa"
(false one), "corazon duro" (black heart). "Yes," said
one of the Mexicans, "and there are actually two of them,"
pointing at the Britishers. My friend said : "Those fellows
seem to object to our sitting here; we had better make
a move." So they departed, wondering what connection
there was between the red rose and the anger of the Mexicans.
The mystery was solved a few days later when my friend
happened to call on an old lady in the neighborhood. He
mentioned the red-rose incident, and his hostess became
almost hysterical with laughter. "Pardon me, senor,"
she said, "but it is the best joke I ever heard. It explain
a great mystery. My nephew, Don Carlos, is much in love
with a young lady, Miss Conception, who live in that house
and he play the bear. He is very jealous and think per-
haps she have another bear, so he disguise himself as a mozo
and keep watch with a friend. He see your friend sit by
the window every night and believe he is playing bear too.

164 MEXICO

The senorita see her bear watching in disguise and just for
mischief she throw the rose to your friend. Oh, Don Carlos
is very angry; he write bitter letters and say he is very
much deceived, and Miss Concepcion now repent very much
of her j oke . I tell him now and everything will be all right . ' '
The next evening a very tame, subdued bear might have
been seen standing below Miss Concepcion's window, making
a very humble apology in choicest Castilian.

But bear rivalries do not always end so innocently.
There is very hot blood in the veins of the young Mexicans,
and again and again reports will find their way into the
papers of fierce conflicts between the suitors for the same
girl. Thus, quite recently one of the Mexico City papers
reported a fatal encounter at Chihuahua, where two young
fellows, members of prominent families, embittered by
rivalry, met at night and fought a duel with pistols, both
being killed. At Monterey the coquettish desire of a girl
to attract attention nearly cost the lives of two men. In
the plaza, at night, she mischievously threw a flower from
her bouquet towards a young man whose attention she
wished to attract. Her lover, furious with jealousy, flew
at his rival, and the two left the plaza to fight it out at the
back of the town, and one if not both lives would have been
lost if friends had not separated the angry young men.

Before a bear can propose marriage he must, of course,
interview the girl's parents. After a conventional period,
accompanied by a friendly sponsor, he must formally call
on the father and propose marriage. If he is eligible, the
girl's inclinations are consulted. She will probably say,
coquette that she is, that she cannot answer till she has
met him. This, too, after months, perhaps years, of even-
ings on the balcony. When the bear is at last permitted
the entre*e, every member of the family and even the ser-
vants have the right of witnessing his adoption as "son-in-

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 165

law elect." Thereafter he is the " novis oficial " or accepted
lover; but even then he never has the advantage of a
tete-a-tete with his fiancee for some one is always playing
gooseberry. And this very unamusing courtship also has
the disadvantage of being extremely expensive. If, for
example, the young fellow would take his sweetheart to
the theatre or to a restaurant, he must entertain the whole
family as well.

Everything, in fact, falls upon the unfortunate bear;
for when the fatal time approaches, not only must he pay
for the furniture of the new home, Tbut he is even expected
to give the bride her trousseau. Among the wealthier
people, it is true, the girl's parents pay for some of the
latter, the bridegroom having only to provide the dresses
and jewels. There are, in Mexico, two wedding ceremonies,
the civil and religious, the latter taking place at the church,
while the former is a contract made before the judge of the
local court in the presence of six witnesses. After marriage,
the wife uses her husband's name as well as her own.
Seiiorita Garcia, who marries Senor Fernandez, thus be-
comes Senora Garcia de Fernandez.

Religion means a great deal to the Mexican women. Most
of them bear the sacred name of Mary, coupled with some
incident in the life of the Virgin, such as " Conception,"
"Sorrows," " Assumption," " Gifts," "Miracles," "Tears,"
etc. In their own way they are devout enough, and are just
as scrupulous in performing their religious duties as they
are in the matters of toilet. They are very superstitious,
a result of their ignorance, and still believe in signs, omens
and other supernatural manifestations. As a rule, they
are kind-hearted and charitable. Smoking is very general
among them, and this is very often done in quite an open
manner and in company with the male members of the
family. Mexican women, on meeting one another, kiss each

166 MEXICO

other on both cheeks, but unlike the Frenchmen, the Mexi-
can men do not imitate their wives in their greetings to
their friends ; they simply embrace and pat each other on
the back affectionately, the Mexican equivalent of "good
old chap. "

The Mexicans have a phrase, "muy simpatica," which
literally means "very sympathetic," but really cannot be
done justice to in English. It means that charming char-
acteristic of personal attractiveness, the result of a sweet
disposition, and this might be truly said to be a terse de-
scription of the better Mexican women. They are "muy
simpatica/' and this the lucky stranger will learn who ex-
periences their kindly hospitality.

Indolence and a lack of domestic training are characteris-
tic of even middle-class Mexican women and girls as well
as of their wealthier sisters ; but it is more marked in large
houses. All the marketing is left to the cook. She has
a sum given her each day, and manages to squeeze a com-
mission out of each shopkeeper. No Mexican housewife
would dream of getting more than a day's supply of food,
— sometimes, indeed, only a meal's supply is kept, — be-
cause the servants would steal it, and also because there
are no ice safes, and meat and other fresh eatables soon go
bad. Such a system prohibits good housekeeping. Ser-
vants' wages are very poor. A cook will get about three
Mexican dollars a week ($1.50). In a well-to-do household
there is a door-keeper (portero), a coachman (cochero),
a chambermaid (recamarera), an ostler (caballerango), a
man of all work (mozo), a cook (cocinera), a woman to
grind maize (molendera) and a footman (lacay o) . Servants
are summoned in true Eastern style by clapping the hands,
as in most houses there are no bells. In old-fashioned house-
holds the domestics call their mistress niiia, literally "little
girl . ' ' Except in fashionable houses, the servants are always

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 167

Indians. Their food costs but little, consisting, as it usually
does, of tortillas and frijoles, and they rarely sleep in beds,
preferring to spread a mat in the hall and roll themselves
in a blanket.

The rigid seclusion of women is a good deal relaxed in
the country towns, where girls are seen more in the streets.
They have a queer custom of taking a walk apparently
after washing the hair, with their long tresses combed out
and flowing down their backs. This they do not seem to
consider at all strange. Their relations with the store
people are equally unconventional. Even well-to-do
women will come in and affably shake hands with the shop-
men, talk in a friendly way with them, and inquire after
their families. But all this freedom stops at the door.
In the street the very same women cut their grocer.
To do otherwise would be wrong — " no es costumbre."

A great deal of the severity of the old regime is breaking
down under the foreign invasion. Rich Mexicans send
their girls to schools in France, in England or the United
States, and they gain new ideas of woman's sphere. But
the change must be necessarily slow, and to all intents and
purposes the average Mexican girl is not educated. When
she has learned her alphabet and can write a stilted letter
in a fulsome Spanish style, can murder a few pieces on the
piano, and mangle a few French phrases, use her needle
indifferently, and discover that her country is bordered
by two oceans, her education is finished. But her greatest
deprivation is the fact that she has no share in the happy
outdoor life of athletics which has done so much for the
present generation of American women.

Still, all this is bound to change. The emancipation of
Mexican women is only a question of time, and the day may
yet dawn when the suffragette movement will be cordially
taken up in the land of the Aztecs. Young women of the

168 MEXICO

middle class are going into business, taking work in the stores
and in offices, and moving about freely in the city without
chaperones. All this is affecting the prejudiced old Mexican
families, who will gradually abandon their Eastern system
of seclusion.

Not long ago the Mexican Herald published a paragraph
about openings for women in Mexico, which was copied by
a number of American papers. The editor of the Herald
subsequently received hundreds of letters from young
American women offering to come to Mexico as typewriters,
clerks, etc., and demanding absurdly high salaries. But
what would most excite the fears of the Mexican maidens
was that most of the American girls added a P.S. to their
letters, asking what chance there was of their capturing
Mexican millionaires on their arrival ! It is unlikely that
Mexican women will be content with their dreary lives of
confinement when they see their country invaded by the
ubiquitous Yankee business girl, taking her place in ab-
solute equality by the side of their brothers. A trade in-
vasion is one thing, a matrimonial invasion is quite another.
The Mexican girls must look to their orange-blossoms.

One feature of modern progress which is certainly to be
regretted is the tendency to abandon the picturesque
Mexican dress, the Spanish mantilla type, and to replace
it with Parisian gowns and hats. Very few of the be-
witching senoritas are now to be seen veiling their charms
with those exquisite lace wraps which one associates with
sunny Spain. Modish costumes are now generally worn,
and owing to the equable climate, there are no such things
as winter dresses or furs, summer gowns being worn all the
year round.

The Mexicans, like all tropical people, love color, and a
strikingly tinted dress wins then* admiration much more read-
ily than the most costly of dull-colored silks. But the poorer

THE MEXICAN WOMAN 169

girls cannot always indulge their taste, having to be content
with a flower in the hair or in the dress, while they are
usually clothed in a plain black skirt with a black cambric
shawl over the shoulders, folded in front in old-fashioned
style. This style of girl, whom one is always meeting in
the streets, wears no hat. Many of them would be quite
good-looking if they were only dressed properly. Ladies
whom I interviewed on the subject told me that women's
clothing is so expensive in Mexico that it is impossible for
people of this class to buy anything better. Some of these
meztiza girls, who have far more Indian than white blood
in their veins, have rather an unpleasant look. They have
dark olive skins, pronounced Indian features, and unnat-
urally black eyelashes, as if they had been dyed.

CHAPTER IX

THE FOREIGN INVASION

MEXICANS being naturally averse to all business enter-
prise or energetic action, have for years past left the de-
velopment of their country to the strangers within their
gates. Unless he is a man of wealth, the Mexican usually
has one ambition, and that is to become a government
employee. With this satisfied, he cares little about banking,
trading or mining; at any rate, he does not care enough
about them to put himself out and work hard. Thus it is
that while the foreigners in Mexico form a comparatively
small percentage of the population, yet their importance
is not to be reckoned by mere numbers.

The English-speaking population of Mexico City is about
six thousand, of which a very large proportion are Ameri-
cans. What is true of the capital is also true of the country
at large, and throughout Mexico there are more Americans
than any other foreign nationality. Within the past dec-
ade they have been simply swarming in, and with them
have come millions of dollars of American money, which
Mexico is destined to find a serious factor some day.
Formerly, Americans were engaged simply in mining and
railway building, but to-day they are to be found in nearly
every branch of commerce. In Mexico City one sees
American banks, and agencies for all kinds of American
goods, such as sewing-machines, typewriters and agricul-
tural machinery; there are American grocers, druggists,
booksellers and fancy goods stores, also tailors, hotels

170

THE FOREIGN INVASION 171

and restaurants. So large a number of Americans are
collected in the capital that there is an extensive American
quarter, where there are modern houses and flats, an Ameri-
can club and several American churches.

During the winter season several of our railway com-
panies advertise Mexico extensively as a winter paradise.
They give away tens of thousands of beautifully illustrated
booklets describing the wonders of the land. They run
cheap excursion trains to Mexico and bring down thousands
of sight-seeing tourists, most of whom come from the West-
ern states. The newspapers in Mexico City publish, every
day, lists of people stopping at the various hotels. I
noticed that the American visitors usually came from
such places as Kalamazoo, Mich., Tombstone, Arizona,
Cross Roads, Iowa, or Jaytown City, Neb. To most of
these people Mexico must certainly seem a land of won-
ders; they have never been in Europe, and for the first
time in their lives they see old churches, cathedrals and
ruins, and mingle among people who have a different lan-
guage and strange customs.

When I first went to Mexico, an old American resident
told me that I should find it a triste or melancholy country,
and I really believe I should have found it so had it not
been for certain of my fellow-citizens that I met. The
Mexicans, both the Indians and the whites, are far from
lively people, and their often sullen faces are wont to de-
press you ; but many Westerners whom I met were so un-
consciously humorous that they kept up my spirits.

There was, however, about these Western people an air
of keen mental alertness which one could not help admiring.
The men were eager for information concerning the re-
sources of Mexico, the business opportunities of the country
and the chances for profitable investment, while the women
displayed equal energy in their sight-seeing and quest for

172 MEXICO

general knowledge. Some business women whom I en-
countered knew much more about Mexico than the average
man, and could talk fluently about the status of its railways,
its mines and agricultural developments.

Among such a large number of Western tourists as annu-
ally invade Mexico and the increasing number of permanent
settlers from the Western states, it is not surprising if there
are a great many rough diamonds whose crude behavior
often disgraces their country. Unfortunately, the world
at large often hears far more of the doings of such people
than of the praiseworthy demeanor of the majority of
Americans who visit Mexico or make their homes there.
In the capital, and, in fact, all over Mexico, there are plenty
of Americans who would be a credit to any country, — cul-
tured people who respect Mexican prejudices, and take
the trouble to learn Spanish thoroughly. They are often-
times ashamed of their crude countrymen, much resenting
their coarse behavior, which reflects so unpleasantly on
Americans in general.

An American newspaper man, for instance, told me that,
while travelling with a party of his fellow-citizens and
walking through the streets of a town, they heard the click
of a sewing-machine in a Mexican house. One of the women
tourists walked into the patio, looked into the sitting-room
and then yelled out to the party, "Why, law me, theyVe
actually got a sewing-machine and an American organ in
here. Why, they're quite civilized." The Mexican family
sat dumfounded with indignation, but before they had time
to express it, the intruder disappeared.

Bad as such cases are, however, there is this to be said,
that the unpolished American tripper is rarely so offensive
on his travels as the low-class Englishman whom one so
often meets in continental Europe. There is usually some-
thing extremely amusing about the "bad breaks" of the

THE FOREIGN INVASION 173

former, and they are always made with such naivete* and
good nature that you half forgive them because of the hearty
laugh they occasion. On the other hand, the antics of the
English 'Arry abroad are almost always certain to excite
wrath.

One very gratifying feature of life in Mexico is the
thoroughly good feeling which exists between Englishmen
and Americans resident in the Republic. The ties of lan-
guage and race seem to draw them together. Not only
are they associated very closely in business but also in the
social life of the country. In most of the American clufcs
Englishmen and Canadians are also eligible for member-
ship, and the fraternal feeling which exists between the
three branches of the English-speaking world shows that
no paper treaty is needed to bring them into alliance.

In addition to the American business men and tourists
there is a numerous class of Americans in Mexico whom I
should call "men with schemes." They hang about the
American saloons, which are becoming so general, and are
very much in evidence at the cheaper American hotels.
Each of them has a scheme with millions in it. Most of
them carry a chunk of gold or silver ore in their pockets,
taken from some mine with possibilities of enormous wealth.
If you enter one of the popular loafing places and listen to
the conversation of these men, you will hear "millions of
dollars" repeated so often that you might imagine yourself
at a convention of the world's plutocrats.

I was seated in the patio of the Iturbide Hotel one day,
discussing mining with a friend. He left me for a moment,
and a rather seedy-looking individual, with a strong Western
accent, sauntered up. " Excuse me, friend," he said, "but
I overheard you talking about mines. Now, I've got a little
piece of property away down in Guerrero which is worth
millions to any man who puts in a few dollars." Here he

174 MEXICO

produced the inevitable piece of silver ore from his pocket.
"I suppose," he continued, "you ain't acquainted with no
New York capitalists as would like to go in on a good thing.
If you could get just a few of your Eastern millionaires in-
terested, there would be something in it for you as well as
me." I was obliged shamefacedly to confess to my would-
be benefactor that my acquaintance with millionaires was
exceedingly limited, and that investors usually required
better credentials than a small piece of silver ore.

Most Americans have a firm impression that Mexicans
love the United States and that ill-will towards us has
practically disappeared. Impartial observers have, how-
ever, assured me that a strong anti- American feeling exists
in some quarters, for which there are several reasons. In
the first place, many Americans in Mexico are much given
to boasting that American capital is getting control of all
the best mines and otherwise acquiring a great hold on the
country. To this is added the bragging of the low-class
American — only too common in Mexico — who calls the
Mexican "a greaser," and is always asserting that a few
hundred Americans could beat the Mexican army and con-
quer the land.

An American resident told me that while he was lunching
one day in a Mexico City restaurant, he heard a party of
Westerners discussing the country in very uncomplimentary
terms. One of them seemed to be interested in a mining
company, which he thought had been unjustly treated by
the Mexican government. "If these d — d greasers don't
let up on this sort of thing," he said, "we Americans will
have to teach them another lesson. Why, man, we could
march a few regiments down here from Texas alone, and
whip the everlasting stuffing out of them." At a neighbor-
ing table sat some young Mexicans, two of them sons of
cabinet ministers, and all understanding English perfectly.

THE FOREIGN INVASION 175

From their looks they did not seem to exactly relish the
American's remarks.

Mexicans retaliate for this whenever the chance offers.
They call Americans "gringos," a term which is said to
have arisen during the war with the United States in 1846.
Some Mexicans heard the American sailors singing, "Green
grow the rashes 0," and tried to mock them, "Gringo"
being the result. They also get even in more unpleasant
ways. A German of my acquaintance was summoned as
a witness in a lawsuit to testify to a man's character. The
judge said to him, "You are an American, senor." "No,"
replied the German, stating his nationality. "Oh, that's
very different," said the judge. He then apologized for
summoning him, put a few questions and told him he was
at liberty to go, adding more apologies. A friend of his,
an American, was next called. "What is your nationality,
senor?" asked the judge. "I am an American," was the
reply. The judge put on a very severe look, asked all sorts
of unpleasant questions, and kept the poor fellow on the
rack for about an hour.

Mexicans, in fact, are becoming so jealous and suspicious
of Americans that it is likely that this may serve to put a
check on any revolutionary excesses which might lead to
American intervention. It is estimated that the United
States has about $600,000,000 invested in Mexico, the inter-
ests of Great Britain and France being equally as large, \
while Germany and other countries also have large sums at j
stake. If the present civil war should result in general
anarchy, coupled with the destruction of foreign property
and the killing of foreigners, the United States would be
compelled to march an army across the border to restore
order; otherwise, the European powers would certainly
adopt summary measures in spite of the Monroe doctrine.
Intelligent Mexicans realize this very thoroughly.

176 MEXICO

During the long administration of President Diaz the
relations between Mexico and the United States were re-
markably harmonious. Every year witnessed a more
pronounced Americanization of Mexico, more American
settlers poured into the country than ever before, and their
numbers and influence were constantly becoming more
formidable. Old prejudices were gradually disappearing.
Under such conditions it seemed possible that within
twenty-five or thirty years Mexico might become peace-
fully annexed to the United States. The events of the
past four years, however, have wrought many changes
and have served to reveal such a strong undercurrent of
anti- Americanism in Mexico that it is fairly safe to predict
that if annexation ever takes place in this generation, it
will have to be accomplished by force.

In France every person who speaks English is called
English. I have seen Parisian gamins point at American
tourists and heard them remark, aRegardez les Anglais."
That is because there are more English than Americans
in Paris. In Mexico it is just the reverse. There are more
Americans than English, and consequently every person
who speaks English is called an American. The natives
cannot detect any difference. I was once walking through
the Plaza in the capital when I heard an Englishman, who
owned an awful Cockney accent, abusing a cabman for
overcharging him, and dropping more h's than centavos.
One of a party of Mexican loafers standing near by, pointed
at the Britisher and remarked, "El Americano no le gusta
perder su dinero " (The American doesn't like to lose his
money).

Americans are not only gradually Americanizing Mexico,
but they are also altering the names of Mexican towns and
districts. The Spaniards abbreviated many of the Indian
names after the Conquest, and now the Americans are mak-

THE FOEEIGN INVASION 177

ing them still shorter. For example, the City of Mexico
is now generally called Mexico City by English-speaking
people. The name certainly has the virtue of being more
concise. Mexicans simply call the city Mexico. Popo-
catepetl, a difficult name to pronounce, has been shortened
by Americans to " Popo." Ixtaccihuatl is known as " Ixy."
Some day Guanajuato and Guadalajara will probably be
known as "Wahno" and "Wadly."

The other foreign peoples in Mexico are chiefly Spanish, »
French, German and English, and in a proportion accord-
ing to that order. Of course the foreign element is more
noticeable in the capital than in the rest of the country.
The Spaniards in Mexico are chiefly engaged in the grocery
trade; the French confine themselves to drapery, the sale
of fancy articles, tailoring and dressmaking; the Germans
are bankers, and have almost a monopoly of the hardware
trade. The cheap German-made goods are eagerly bought.
I myself purchased a pocket-knife which attracted me by
the somewhat pretty medallion let into the handle, dis-
playing the face of a dark-eyed sefiorita. I thought I had
captured an example of Mexican industry, but my delusion
did not last long. During my travels I happened to meet
a German" drummer," and on showing him this knife as a
specimen of Mexican skill he burst out laughing. "Vy,
mein friendt," he said, "I sold dose knives. Dey vas made
by mein firm in Berlin."

The trade of Mexico is to-day chiefly controlled by the
United States and Germany, the latter country having
of late shown wonderful enterprise. German drummers
are encountered almost everywhere, all of them speaking
Spanish fluently. The catalogues of German firms, too,
are always printed in Spanish, the prices given in Mexican
currency, and the goods are specially designed for Mexican
trade. British trade was once supreme in Mexico, but owing

N

178 MEXICO

to lack of proper methods on the part of English firms, this
proud position has long been lost.

With decreased business interests the British colony in
the capital is naturally a small one, chiefly comprising the
managers of several important British companies and their
subordinates. But while British influence in Mexico has
thus declined, that of Canada, strangely enough, has cor-
respondingly increased. Canada's stake in the country has
recently become so large in mines and other enterprises,
in fact, that it has been found necessary to appoint a
Canadian commercial agent whose duty it is to safeguard
Canada's vested interests and to report to the Dominion
government on openings for capital, etc. The great
Electric Light and Power Company, which supplies Mexico
City, is a Canadian corporation. Canadian banks are
rapidly extending their business in the country, and Cana-
dians share with Americans the financing of the electric
and street railway business. A Canadian company owns
the Mexico City street-car lines, and Canadian investors
are now taking a leading interest in water-power schemes.
The Mexican is not born to be a business man. He is
not possessed of any gifts of invention or initiative, and
he detests the hustle and worry of commercial life. Nearly
all commerce is, therefore, in the hands of foreigners. All

| the modern improvements in Mexico have been established

£ by them and with their capital.

In this connection it may be remarked that a fact which
impresses most visitors in Mexico is the number of foreign
clerks that are employed in American, English and Canadian
offices, oftentimes in places where it would seem that
Mexicans would do much better. Many of the foreign
firms which employ young Mexicans complain, however,
that they are lazy and frivolous. Of course there is a great
deal in the point of view; and perhaps a Frenchman, an

THE FOREIGN INVASION 179

Italian or a Spaniard of the same Latin race would not find
these young fellows so light-headed and inefficient as do
Anglo-Saxons. It is also true that many young Mexicans
who have been educated in England or the United States
are attaining a high position in the professional and busi-
ness life of the Republic. Nevertheless, the fact remains
that most of the younger natives think too much about
senoritas, bull-fights and gambling and too little about
their work; in short, they do not take life seriously enough.
An American railway manager said to me : " It is impossible
to get a young Mexican to assume any responsibility or take
any initiative. He has to be told the same thing over and
over again. I would rather have one bright young Ameri-
can in my office than three average Mexicans."

The exports of Mexico are mainly silver, gold, copper
and other minerals; hemp, mahogany, cedar and dye-
woods, tobacco, coffee, hides, india-rubber, fruit, vanilla,
etc. Those who have not travelled in the country can have
no conception of its marvellous richness. Possessing every
range of climate, and soils capable of producing every
variety of fruit, vegetable and flower; with mineral wealth
of amazing extent ; and with vast areas peculiarly adapted
for sheep and cattle, it is indeed a land of wonders. But
although so potentially wealthy, Mexico is still in her in-
fancy as regards the development of her resources. The
success of foreign companies and the large and steady divi-
dends they are able to pay are proving that the land of the
Aztecs is a profitable field for investment. It must year
by year become more so; but a fraction of its wondrous
resources have been tapped, and under its present firm
government the country is always going forward and must
have a magnificent destiny.

An interesting feature of Mexico is the number of children
of American and English parentage who are growing up

180 MEXICO

all over the country, and are bound to exercise a good in-
fluence on its future. Born and educated in Mexico, they
are likely to make their homes there; and as they speak
both English and Spanish, the Mexican children with whom
they play imbibe their ideas of freedom and progress.
/ Some of the Mexicans holding a high position in the republic
I are of British or American descent, notably Senor Creel, the
f former Mexican Ambassador to the United States, and Senor
Pankhurst, who was Governor of Zacatecas under Diaz.

Very few English or Americans marry Mexican women,
but a large number of Germans do so. The Germans affiliate
with the Mexicans much better than do the English or
Americans, one reason for which is that they go to Mexico
to establish their permanent residence there, while most
Americans and Englishmen wish only to make their fortunes
and then to return to their native lands. While travelling
I in Mexico I frequently heard little Teutons — boys and
f girls — with flaxen hair and blue eyes, speaking Spanish
| fluently. They were the children of Germans with Mexican
|; wives. These German-Mexican children usually speak
three languages, German, Spanish and English; but they
seem to become much more Mexicanized than the American
or English children brought up in Mexico. All the Euro-
pean children of whole or half blood reared in Mexico appear
to suffer from the climate, having a general look of sickli-
ness, with pale, colorless faces.

Mexico is a tempting land for the business man, as it
offers him large profits, for the most part easily made. The
salaries, too, for commercial clerks and skilled laborers,
engineers, etc., are a great deal higher than those obtainable
in Europe. On the other hand, the cost of living is far
greater. For the unskilled worker, the mere clerk or the
day laborer, Mexico offers no opportunities. The man
who has the best chance there is the small capitalist with

THE FOREIGN INVASION 181

about ten thousand dollars, who is careful in his invest-
ments. At first he must work harder than he would at
home; but if he is steady, he will scarcely fail to get on.
First of all he must learn the ways of the country and to
speak Spanish. Of the easier ways of making money the *
best are storekeeping, any sound manufacture, cattle- rais- I
ing, timber, tobacco, sugar and coffee, fruit farms, rubber
and mining. The country is so vast and the districts which
are being opened up by the railways are so fertile and so
rich in minerals that there is an almost unlimited demand
for foreign capital throughout Mexico.

During my stay in Mexico I came across some wonderful
instances of men of small means having become wealthy.
One of the leading bankers of Mexico City, a Canadian, was \
formerly a railway conductor, and is now one of the richest
men in the country. Another Canadian, who is the lead-
ing druggist in the capital, and has stores all over Mexico,
came down only a few years ago with a small stock of
patent medicines and started in a humble way. The pro-
prietor of the biggest hardware establishment — equalling
any store of the kind in the United States — is an enter-
prising German who was a drummer only a short time ago.
A clerk who had a salary of a hundred dollars a month and
bought a small mining property which proved to be a bo-
nanza is now one of the wealthiest men in southern Mexico.

The Mexican laws affecting investors are generous and,
as a rule, are fairly administered, everything possible being
done to avoid prejudicing foreign interests. If, therefore,
Americans only realized the opportunities Mexico affords
for the investment of capital there would soon be so much
money forthcoming from this country that our national
stake in Mexico's prosperity would be even greater than it
already is.

There are several foreign quarters in Mexico City, the

182 MEXICO

largest of these being the American, already referred to,
which is situated in the vicinity of the Paseo de la Reforma.
In and about this quarter most of the English and Canadians
also reside and fraternize with the Americans. The Mexi-
can Herald devotes almost a page every day to the doings
of the American colony, its dances, receptions and other so-
cial functions. There are also German, Italian and French
quarters, but not so much is heard of them. All along the
Paseo wide asphalted streets are being laid out, planted
with grass-plots and double rows of trees. Three new
I districts, known as the Colonia Reforma, the Colonia Roma
! and Colonia Santa Maria, have been built up with American
I capital, and during the past ten years the value of land has
advanced nearly a thousand per cent, many lucky investors
having made large fortunes.

Strange to say, very few of the modern houses have fire-
places or any other system of heating. Americans, who
always have their houses well heated at home, evidently
prefer to follow the Mexican custom and sit about shiver-
ing. I heard a good story of a young Englishman who
occupied a flat in the American colony, and, determin-
ing to be comfortable, installed an American stove. His
rooms were so cosey that his friends increased rapidly ; men
got into the habit of saying, " Let's go round to Smith's
place, it's so comfortable." The Briton had only a small
income, but he fell in love with a wealthy American's daugh-
ter. When she broke the news to her stern parent, to her
surprise, he said, " Marry him, my daughter, with my
blessing. I like that young fellow. He knows enough to
make a comfortable home for himself, and he is bound to
make one for his wife." The truth was that the old gentle-
man had been one of the most frequent callers at Smith's
flat on cold nights, and was determined not to lose such a
comfortable lounging place.

THE FOREIGN INVASION 183

An outgrowth of American social life in the capital is
the Country Club, which has a fine club-house at Cheru-%^
busco, a beautiful suburb. It stands in the midst of large
grounds and on the borders of a lake, clear as crystal, fed
from an artesian well. While the golf links are the chief
attraction, cricket, tennis, football and other sports are
enjoyed.

American business men have an American business club
in the city, and English residents have established the
British Club. Football matches between American and
English teams formed of members of the two clubs fre-
quently take place during the winter season. The Germans
have the finest men's club, a large new building with a
splendid gymnasium, a bowling alley, a beer hall, and
other Teutonic attractions. The Spaniards and French
also have their clubs, the largest Spanish club being the
Casino Espanol, with eight hundred members, which occu-
pies a fine old mansion, rivalling the famous Jockey Club.
Even the Chinese have established a club of their own, -*-
which has a membership of nearly four hundred.

CHAPTER X

THE WHITE MAN'S BURDEN-BEARER

WHEREVER the traveller goes in Mexico, he finds himself
face to face with the Indian peon, the laborer of the country,
who is a distinctive feature of Mexican life. One sees him
in the cities in his ragged clothing and tattered sarape,
bearing heavy burdens through the streets, carrying loads
of bricks up among the scaffoldings of new buildings, or,
as an itinerant vendor, hawking his fruit, charcoal and other
commodities. In the country districts the peon is the farm
laborer, and in the mines he can be seen bringing out the
heavy loads of gold and silver ore which make dividends
for foreign investors.

Although the real natives of Mexico, the great masses,
are called Indians, the name gives a very erroneous im-
pression to the average reader . The term ' l Indian ' ' usually
calls up a mental picture of a North American red man with
painted face and feathered head-dress; whereas, there is
almost as much difference between the Mexican and North
American Indians as there is between an Esquimau and
an Arab. Instead of being hunters, as were their fiercer
neighbors in the North, the Mexican Indians have always
been an agricultural people.

At the time of the Conquest, Mexico was inhabited by
several Indian nations under separate governments, and
all speaking different dialects. The Aztecs, for instance,
held the Valley of Mexico under Montezuma; the Tlax-
calans formed a Republic around what is now the City of

184

THE WHITE MAN'S BURDEN-BEARER 185

Puebla; the Zapotecs were all-powerful in southern Mexico.
Even to-day there are no less than forty tribes and their
branches, speaking, it is said, some one hundred and fifty
different languages; and while most of these people also
speak a crude Spanish, there are districts where little if
any Spanish is understood. It is said that within a short
distance of Mexico City there are still surviving full-blooded
descendants of the Aztecs, speaking a language which is
almost the pure ancient tongue. All these Indian tribes
suffered subjection at the hands of the Spaniards, and were
lumped together under the term of "peons," which literally
meant slaves. Their descendants, suffering from the evil
effects of previous generations of slavery and degradation,
form the bulk of the lower classes in modern Mexico. The
name " peon " still clings to them, for although Mexico abol-
ished slavery long ago, the peons of to-day are often noth-
ing but bondsmen.

Just as their languages differ, so, too, the physical ap-
pearance of the Mexican Indians is often dissimilar. One
tribe will have the typical angular face and high cheek-
bones of the Mongolian peoples, with the small, straight
nose which one sees in a Malay. Another Indian, from a
different part of the country, will have a round face and
a broad, bridgeless nose, and a mouth often large, with
full lips. On the other hand, two or three tribes, such as
the Yaquis, a wild, unconquered race living in Sonora in
northern Mexico, have the dark skin and coarse features
of the mulatto. The great mass of the Indians in central
Mexico, however, and especially those seen in and about
the capital, usually have intensely black hair and eyes,
yellowish brown complexions and are slight in stature,
bearing a strong resemblance to Japanese peasants, some-
times even having a slight obliquity of the eyes. In some
of the tribes one is much impressed with this likeness to

186 MEXICO

the Chinese or Japanese, and it is certainly a fact that if
the Orientals were dressed in Mexican style they might
easily pass for Indians. It is said that students of languages
have found some resemblance between the Mexican tongues
and various languages of the Far East. Be that as it may,
there is much in Mexico which suggests very close ties with
the Orient, and some of the ancient sculptures apparently
show distinct Chinese features.

In no part of the Republic is there a more remarkable
physical difference among the Indians than is to be found
among the Mayans of Yucatan, their appearance being very
different from that of the typical Mexican Indian. They
are of a red, bricky tint, are much darker than the others,
also a good deal shorter, broad-headed, muscular and
usually have quite a remarkable development of the chest.
They are characterized, too, by a very sunny disposition.
Nothing is easier than to make a Mayan laugh, while it
would seemingly be a hopeless task to get a smile from the
sullen, sad faces of most of the other Mexican Indians one
sees at work or at play.

The Mayans had, it is declared, reached quite a high
state of civilization when the Spaniards came. It is a
historical fact that the conquest of Yucatan cost the
Spaniards more in blood and treasure than did the rest of
Mexico. To the Mayans are attributed the very remarkable
ruins in Yucatan. At the time of the conquest they had
a system of writing, had made some advances in literature,
and in their temples were great numbers of manuscripts.
These were ruthlessly destroyed by the Spaniards in their
efforts to stamp out Mayan civilization, and the historical
records of the race were thus lost. The Mayan language,
however, is still spoken by three hundred thousand people,
and many of the white inhabitants of Yucatan use it to
a greater extent than Spanish.

THE ANCIENT RACE.
Types of Mexican Indians, young and old.

THE WHITE MAN'S BURDEN-BEARER 187

The various Indian races in Mexico to-day number many
millions, those of pure blood constituting one-third of the
population, while fully half the Mexicans are those of mixed
blood known as meztizos. Many Indians of pure blood
and a still greater number of meztizos have played an im-
portant part in Mexican history. Several Mexican presi-
dents, among whom were Guerrero and Juarez, were pure
Indians, while the majority of the others were half-breeds.

It is from this great Indian population that the peon, the
Mexican workingman, has been evolved, and Mexico could
not do without him. He not only cultivates the soil, works
in the mines and does all the hard labor, but he also acts
as servant. Despite his many faults, he has some wonder-
fully good qualities. Even if he is not naturally cleanly
or naturally honest, there is a charm all his own in the
simple, whole-hearted way in which he accepts his sub-
ordinate position. Always polite, and incapable of taking
a liberty, always with his hat in his hand, the Indian has
nothing but respect to show you, if you give him the hum-
ble wage he claims, a half holiday now and again, and per-
mission to attend any and every fiesta celebrated in his
village. Notwithstanding his dirt, his tattered clothes,
his battered sombrero and his filthy blanket, the Mexican
Indian is one of nature's gentlemen, if he is only treated
properly.

But he has his faults, and they are faults which have
seriously checked progress in Mexico. He is essential to
agriculture, yet his tropical surroundings and his mental
characteristics unfit him for energetic work or the adoption
of modern improvements. As a farmer the Indian is a
rank failure. He brings no intelligence to his work. His
ancestors hundreds of years ago scratched the soil with
a wooden hoe, and he is content enough to go on with the
same implement. If a society were formed for presenting

188 MEXICO

every Indian peon with a modern plough, it would do no
good; he wouldn't care to use it, and he wouldn't use it.
His ideal of life is to be idle; he does not want to struggle;
he does not want to fight; he only desires his little mud-
brick hut, his piece of ground, his pig, his tortillas and his
frijoles. Furniture he does not need, as his household
goods are generally limited to a tin can for boiling water
or cooking, a couple of stones for making tortillas, a few
picturesque jars made by the native potters and a few
old sacks to sleep on. His wants being easily supplied,
there is really no incentive for him to be progressive. He
cannot read or write, is unable to think, and his mode of
life is primeval in its simplicity.

The Indian in the tropical region of Mexico is especially
slothful. All he needs is enough to eat, a thatched hut and
a little cotton cloth. The hut he can make himself; there
are fish in the river and game in the forest. There is
plenty of unoccupied land upon which he can raise a little
maize for food or to trade for such simple luxuries as coffee,
sugar and tobacco. There is no winter to provide against,
and though rainy days often come, they only mean more
rest. Consequently, the tropical Indian is seldom a hireling.

Mentally and physically lethargic, the peon of central
Mexico has been for years little more than a slave, in spite
of his very slender wants. The system which is called
peonage is very subtle and it is very simple. The peon
receives so scant a wage that he has nothing left after his
humble wants have been satisfied. He usually earns from
fifteen to fifty cents a day, and being very improvident
is always without money. On all the haciendas or large
estates he is compelled to deal at the hacienda store, being
encouraged to be extravagant in his orders. This is de-
liberate on the part of the proprietors, the haciendados,
because, by the law of Mexico, as long as an Indian workman

THE WHITE MAN'S BURDEN-BEARER 189

owes his employer a dollar he is the latter's chattel, and must
go on working for him till he has paid off his debt.

But the haciendado takes great care that the debt is never
paid off, and as very few Indians on big estates are allowed
to owe less than twenty dollars, the haciendado may feel
quite easy in his mind about his human property. If the <<
estate changes hands, the debt is sold to the new master,
the peons passing into his possession just as would the cattle j
in the farmyard when stock was being sold. As against
this tyranny, one must remember that the haciendado has
to furnish medical attendance J^ay fees on marriages, burials,
etc. | and that when he is old me peon must be looked after
and given the necessities of life. It is therefore as much
to the advantage of the employer to keep the peon in good
health as it is in the interest of a sheep farmer to keep his
flocks from foot-rot, so that, after all is said and done, the
easy-going, sweet-mannered peon is little more than a beast
of burden.

But if he is cheap, the peon needs humoring. He will
only work in one way, the most laborious, old-fashioned
and slow way, and he will not work even in that way unless
he is watched. Then, too, he is obdurate in the matter
of fiestas. The Mexican calendar fairly bristles with
fiestas and saints' days, and as the main feature of these
celebrations is an indulgence in such cheap spirits as tequila
and mescal, the peon insists on knocking off work and tak-
ing part in them. Sunday, of course, is also a day of rest,
and most peons need Monday to recover from the effects
of the libations of the Sabbath. Therefore the average
Indian will probably not do more than two hundred days'
work in the year.

Although so conscientious in keeping the various holy
days of the Catholic church, the religion of the average peon
is usually intermixed with the grossest superstition, and

190 MEXICO

amounts to sheer idolatry. Various shrines, pictures and
statues are believed by him to possess supernatural powers,
and he worships them with a remarkable intensity of de-
votion. While displaying all this reverence for the emblems
of Christianity, it is said that the Indians in some remote
villages also worship their ancient idols, and sometimes
sacrifice lambs or fowls to win the favor or appease the
wrath of these pagan deities. The priests try to put a stop
to these practices, but they still continue. Passion plays,
flagellation and other mediaeval religious customs flourish
among the Indian population, to whom the weird and
horrible always strongly appeal. As an instance of this,
f^ Hopkinson Smith thus describes a penitential scene
whicjh he witnessed in a Mexican chuEfeh: "A score of
Indiki^ women," he says, " were kneelingfiipon mats of green
rushes %read on the stone floor of the Jehurch, their cheeks
hollow from fasting, and their eyes /glistening with that
strange glassy look peculiar to half -Starved people. Over
their shoulder^ were twisted black rebosas, and round each
head was bound; a veritable crown of thorns. In their
hands they held & scourge of plaited needles. They had
sat there day and night? withojli moving, for nearly a week.
This terrible ceremony o^curf once a year in Passion week.
The penance lasts eight d|$|. Each penitent pays a sum
of money for the privilege, ah4 her name and number is
then inscribed upon a sqlt of talfyifepard which is hung on
the cloister wall. Upojft this is also'^igpt a record of the
punishment. The penitents supply tn%ir blankets and
pillows and the majs upon which they re&fc^heir weary
bones. The priesj furnishes everything else "V- a little
greasy gruel ancj^the stone pavement."

The greatest inhumanities from which the Mexican
Indians suffer are those which result from the transporta-
tion of labor to the plantations in the tropical parts of the

THE WHITE MAN9 8 BURDEN-BEARER 191

country. In such tropical places as Tehuantepec, life
is very simple and cheap for the local Indian, and he will
not work. But work must be done, and therefore hundreds
of peons are hoodwinked into signing on as laborers and
transported to the tropics from the more temperate parts
of Mexico. There are agents at work all over the country
picking them up and deporting them. The unfortunate
Indians contract to work for six months for twenty-five
cents a day, with their food, tortillas, beans, rice and a little
meat on Sundays. Of course they at once get into debt at
the hacienda store, and they are never allowed to get out
again. Armed guards are posted at the hacienda entrances
to stop any attempt at escape. Hundreds of these poor
creatures, accustomed to cooler climates, die off of fever.

Being utterly without ambition, the Indians have no
desire to improve their condition or educate their families.
None of them can be trusted with money; in a few hours
most of them will drink and gamble away the earnings of
months. The great aim of the average peon is to earn a
little money, sufficient to supply him with tortillas and
frijoles and the opportunity to see an occasional bull-fight
or enjoy a little gambling. As long as he has a penny in his
pocket he will not work, and even when his money is gone,
the word amanana" (meaning to-morrow, but in fact
some more convenient time) springs instinctively to his lips.
Untruthfulness is universal among Indians of the lower
orders, and in the capital most of them are petty thieves.
Very few of them have the slightest conception of morality
from the Anglo-Saxon point of view.

Gambling, as already remarked, is one of the Indian's
worst vices, and his favorite medium of risking his hard-
earned coin is cock-fighting. For this sport he has a pas-
sionate love. Fighting cocks are familiar objects every-
where, and can often be seen outside the Indian huts,

192 MEXICO

tied by the leg to a stake. Victorious birds are carried
about from village to village, to make up fights upon which
the improvident Indians will wager their last pennies.
The sport as practised in Mexico is extremely cruel, thin
steel blades or spurs, as sharp as a razor, being attached
to the birds' claws. One of the combatants will often be
despatched at the first stroke; sometimes the birds will
fight several rounds, hacked and bleeding, before the fray
ends.

In spite of his poverty and his numerous bad traits,
the Indian is extremely generous. If he has no tortillas
or frijoles, some of his neighbors have, and they will gladly
share with him, for conditions may be reversed to-morrow.
Although his cruelty to animals is notorious, his love for
children is just as marked. It is a common sight to see
a peon in the street, with but two pieces of cotton clothing
to his back, stop a woman with a baby in her arms, and
holding the child's face between both hands, deliver a re-
sounding smack and chuck it under the chin. His polite-
ness is that of a cavalier. In the most unaffected manner
the young Indian will take his battered straw sombrero
from his head and reverently kiss the hand of some ancient
relative, in a tattered dress, when he happens to meet her.
To hear these unwashed, ragged folk exchanging graceful
compliments in choice Spanish is oftentimes grotesque.
Centuries of oppression have degraded the peon, but when
given opportunity, he often displays great talent in the arts
and crafts, and when educated, many of them are very
bright. Among the Indian masses the spread of education
is necessarily slow, but it is destined, in time, to put an
end to the repulsive aspects of peonage.

The Indian man has a fitting mate in the Indian woman,
who is not a wholesome-looking person. Nearly all the
women are small, plump and slatternly, with tousled hair,

THE WHITE MAN'S BURDEN -BEARER 193

their dresses torn and dirty, their general appearance being
reminiscent of gypsies. Some of the girls are handsome
enough ; but the hardness and monotony of their lives make
them old women before their time, and an Indian maiden
of thirty is often simply a bent and wrinkled hag. Early
marriages are the rule, girls of fourteen in some cases being
married to boys of sixteen, after which they become mere
household drudges. In many places the immorality which
exists is appalling, polygamy being quite general, marriages
seldom taking place and kinship being disregarded. The
Mexican government, with the aid of the church, is en-
deavoring to put an end to these deplorable conditions.

Large families are the rule among the Indian population,
a childless woman being very rare; but most of the chil-
dren, through neglect, die in infancy. Like their husbands,
the women are invariably dull-witted and unprogressive.
Even in those parts where flour is available, they will
continue every morning to pound their corn on the metate
and bake the tortillas, for they would scorn the American
idea of having one big bake and getting it over. They
have few virtues save their devotion to their husbands
and children ; but many of them are not unskilful in fancy
work, being able to follow the most elaborate designs, doing
also really delicate and pretty work on handkerchiefs and
linens.

CHAPTER XI

FROM DIAZ TO HUERTA

SINCE the retirement of President Diaz in 1911, Mexico has been
in a state of continuous disorder, with numerous governmental
changes ; one President has been assassinated, and his successor has
been confronted not only by insurrections, but by other grave na-
tional dangers. In northern Mexico the revolutionists have estab-
lished a reign of terror ; business there has been almost suspended,
and thousands of refugees have left that part of the countiy.
While struggling to suppress these insurrections, the national gov-
ernment has also had to contend with serious financial difficulties.
In view of the gravity of the situation, it seems appropriate that
the present edition of this book should contain a brief review of
modern Mexican history, which may serve to throw some light on
the present condition of affairs.

The history of modern Mexico may be said to date from
1876, when General Porfirio Diaz became President, and
practically dictator, an office which he held for over thirty
years. That Mexico was, and still is, unfit to be a republic
in the true sense of the term is not only illustrated by the
career of this remarkable man, but also by the events that
have followed his retirement. Combining the qualities of
a military genius and statesman, he governed the country
with an iron hand, and while it is true that his rule was ty-
rannical, nevertheless it brought order out of chaos, and en-
abled Mexico to enjoy a long era of peace and prosperity.

Until the advent of Diaz, the country had been upset for
nearly fifty years by continuous revolutions. There had
been two emperors and several military dictators; some-

194

FROM DIAZ TO HUERTA 195

times, for short periods, there was some form of constitu-
tional government, but there was never an actual republic.
One President, General Comonfort, even rebelled against
his own administration, asserting that government under the
existing constitution was impossible. During this period
the government was never changed excepting by force.

Diaz was a disciple of Benito Juarez, the Mexican pa-
triot, and gained distinction during the war between France
and Mexico. He also took a foremost part in defeating the
forces of the ill-fated Maximilian. In 1872, after the death
of Juarez, he headed a revolution against Lerda de Tejada,
who was accused of having gained the presidency illegally.
Defeated at first, and compelled to seek refuge in the
United States, Diaz returned to Mexico in 1876, and raised
an army in Oaxaca. Sweeping away all opposition, he
marched to the capital and assumed the presidency.
When installed, his power became supreme, and with the
exception of one brief presidential term, he ruled Mexico un-
til 1911. Surrounded by a strong clique of able men, who
were popularly known as the " cientificos," or scien-
tific politicians, Diaz, by his wonderful genius, succeeded
}n uniting _all parties and establishing a benevolent military
dictatorship under the forms of a pure democracy. It was,
however, exactly the sort of government that Mexico needed
and which, with some modifications, Mexico still needs.

In a short time order was established in the country,
an efficient police system was introduced which put down
brigandage, trade was fostered and everything done to
encourage foreign investors. With the establishment of
a strong central government revolutions soon came to an
end. While in 1876 Mexico had possessed only 360 miles
of railway, twenty-six years later there were over ten
thousand. Telegraph and telephone lines all over the
country completed the centralization of the government.

196 MEXICO

Under the new order of things the old Mexican cities became
busy places, with asphalted streets, electric lights, street-
cars, new public buildings, fine shops, and other evidences
of modern progress. Remote parts of Mexico, in which
it had been unsafe to travel, were visited by hundreds of
American tourists during the winter months. Foreign
capital invested in the country leaped from $500,000 to
the amazing total of $1,400,000,000. Men with money
swarmed into Mexico from all parts of the world to engage
in business, particularly mining, for the mineral riches of
the country, its gold, silver and copper, had not been half
developed.

During thirty years of progress such changes had been
wrought in Mexico that it seemed impossible that the
country would ever witness a serious revolution again.
Unexpected events, however, furnished ample proof that
Mexico's prosperity had rested on an insecure foundation
and was destined to collapse.

In 1909 Diaz was in his eightieth year, wonderfully
vigorous for his age, and still possessing a keen intellect;
but it is not surprising that he lacked his former grip on the
body politic. He found, at last, that he was unable
to curb certain turbulent elements which had been slowly
gathering strength.

The autocratic rule of the dictator began to meet with
growing disapproval from a large class of educated and pro-
gressive men who represented what might be termed the
young Mexican party. They were dissatisfied with Diaz's
disregard of constitutional methods and his system of
reelecting himself every six years. Under his system
of dictatorship no rival candidate dared to appear, because
any severe public criticism of the government would prob-
ably have meant imprisonment on some flimsy pretext
and possibly a death sentence. Opposition to the rule

GENERAL DIAZ.

A striking portrait of Mexico's former President.

FROM DIAZ TO HUEBTA 197

of Diaz was, however, secretly spreading. There were
rumors of wholesale corruption in governmental depart-
ments and of atrocities perpetrated under the government's
authority, although a rigid press censorship made it difficult
for the facts to leak out. There was also widespread dis-
satisfaction because a small circle of men associated with the
President made huge fortunes from government finance and
deals in mines and railways, while none of the younger men
were given a share of the spoils. On every hand it was
evident that the Diaz administration, through its long
tenure of office, had become effete and incapable, and the
great mass of the people were anxious for a change. In
every department of the government corruption was at
work, and the local authorities grossly abused their power.

The undercurrent of dissatisfaction with the Diaz regime
found an outlet in the United States in 1909, when some
magazine^ of large circulation published highly sensational
articles describing the horrors of the Mexican peonage
system. Thousands of wretched laborers on the tobacco
farms of the Valle Nacional and other places, it was alleged,
were worked to death, unpaid and half starved, while gov-
ernment officials made large fortunes out of the infamous
traffic. Eight thousand peaceable Yaqui Indians, it was
charged, had been torn from their homes in Sonora, trans-
ported to Yucatan, and compelled to work as slaves on the
sisal-hemp plantations. They were treated with the
utmost inhumanity, and the death rate was said to be
enormous. In their attacks on the Diaz government the
writers of these articles also described the terrible condition
of the Mexican prisons, especially those at Belem and Vera
Cruz. The prisoners, it was asserted, were starved and
tortured and confined in vermin-infested cells that would
hardly have been tolerated in the middle ages.

Although the Mexican government declared these

198 MEXICO

•

articles to be gross exaggerations, and prohibited the cir-
culation of American magazines containing them, they
found their way secretly into Mexico, and did much to
increase the spirit of disaffection. Agitators began to
appear in various parts of the country, inciting the people
to revolution and demanding reforms; but on finding
themselves threatened with arrest most of them fled to the
United States.

In the summer of 1910, when the presidential elections
took place, Don Francisco Madero astonished Mexico by
appearing as a presidential candidate in opposition to Diaz.
He was a member of one of the wealthiest Mexican families,
a ranchman, and possessed of some culture ; but he was of
rather an unstable, visionary nature, and was said to be a
spiritualist. In appearance he was a small, almost timid-
looking man; but whenever he spoke he convinced his
hearers that he had plenty of courage, and no matter how
visionary some of his ideas might have been he was always
full of enthusiasm.

Madero introduced American electioneering methods
into Mexico. He travelled about the country delivering
sensational speeches, and openly denounced the Diaz ad-
ministration as extravagant and corrupt. Unfortunately,
he made many rash promises, asserting, for example, that
if he were elected, even the poorest peon would be paid a
dollar a day instead of twenty-five cents ; that taxes would
be reduced to almost nothing ; and that the vast estates
of northern Mexico should be broken up and divided
among the people. This plain speaking gave him a large
following, and it also stirred the Diaz government into ac-
tivity. While engaged in speech-making at Monterey in
northern Mexico, Madero was arrested on a charge of se-
dition. He was sent to the state prison at San Luis Potosi,
but after remaining there for a short time he was released

FROM DIAZ TO HUEETA 199

on bail. This he forfeited by escaping to the United States.
From San Antonio, Texas, he kept in communication with
his followers in Mexico, and secretly fomented an uprising
of the disaffected.

In January, 1911, Madero returned to Mexico and issued
a proclamation in Chihuahua denouncing Diaz and calling
for the overthrow of the tyrant's rule. He made charges
of wholesale corruption against Senor Limantour, the Min-
ister of Finance and other members of the cabinet.
Madero's promises of free land and high wages were suffi-
cient to start a revolution in northern Mexico, and to
incite the ignorant peons and cow-punchers, who are about
as low in the scale of human intelligence as it is possible to
find within an acknowledged sphere of civilization.

At the outset the revolution was chiefly confined to the
mountainous districts of Chihuahua, Coahuila and Sonora,
where there were comparatively few government troops.
By February, however, the revolutionists had increased in
number, and the uprising had reached serious proportions.
Its success revealed one fatal error of Diaz. If, during his
long rule, he had prepared for the future by instructing the
people gradually in the real meaning of the word republic,
and had introduced and developed a system of small owner-
ship in the country districts, he would have created a strong
middle class, attached to the soil, for without this no
republic can expect to survive. That he had enormous
difficulties to contend with cannot be denied ; but even
his admirers are forced to admit that in the latter years of
his administration he might have done much more for the
great mass of the people than he succeeded in accomplishing.
As it was, he reaped the harvest of revolution and civil
strife which so many autocrats have gathered through their
blindness to the consequences of their acts and follies. It
is largely owing to the lack of a substantial middle class and

200 MEXICO

a system of small land ownership that Mexico to-day is in
such a deplorable condition.

In February, 1911, Madero was joined by two other
revolutionary leaders, Orozco and Blanco, and the bandit
chief Pancho Villa, who had already caused an uprising in
northern Mexico. The Governor of Chihuahua, Abraham
Gonzales, also came to his assistance with men and money.
Giuseppe Garibaldi, a grandson of the Italian liberator,
joined his staff and it was to him that General Navarro,
the veteran Federal commander, surrendered his sword when
the revolutionists, in May, captured the important town of
Juarez near the American border. During the fighting
between the revolutionists and the government troops,
some American non-combatants in United States territory
were accidentally wounded. It was reported, moreover,
that arms and ammunition were being conveyed across the
line to the revolutionists by American sympathizers. These
facts led President Taft to station twenty thousand troops
along the Rio Grande, in order to protect American residents
and enforce neutrality. Meanwhile, in the south of
Mexico, General Figueroa — since killed — and the no-
torious bandit, Emiliano Zapata, were leading bands of
desperados about the country, looting, destroying property
and slaughtering non-combatants even within a short
distance from the capital.

After the capture of Juarez by the revolutionists, Diaz
endeavored to make terms with Madero, but the latter
insisted on the dictator's retirement as the first step to-
wards the establishment of peace. While Diaz was nom-
inally supported in the capital by a congress constitution-
ally chosen, Madero was more than once praised as a
patriot in open debates. In the heart of the city there was
a band of 1500 revolutionists, well armed and equipped,
ready to strike a blow at any moment, while a large pro-

TO HUEETA 201

portion of the people, not excepting soldiers and police,
were in sympathy with the movement. The Federal
army, when put to the test, was found to be grossly in-
efficient.

At last, Diaz's own cabinet urged him to resign, and the
veteran ruler, anxious to prevent any further bloodshed,
agreed to retire. A treaty was at once signed with the
revolutionists, and it was agreed that Seiior Francisco de la
Barra should be Provisional President until a successor was
elected. On May 25, General Diaz left the capital, and a
few days later, accompanied by his family, he embarked
on a German steamer and sailed for Europe. He has since
resided in the south of France. All the members of his
cabinet left Mexico at the same time, fearing imprisonment
or assassination.

On June 7, 1911, Madero entered the capital and was
hailed as the liberator of Mexico. Four months later he
was elected President. His election, however, failed to
restore peace. Having assisted in inciting and arming a
horde of bandits and half-civilized Indian peons, he was
destined to suffer the results of that crime against law and
order. Several revolutionist leaders refused to recognize
his government ; insurrections broke out again in northern
Mexico, and the Federal troops were powerless to check
them. Zapata and other bandits still continued their work
of slaughter and destruction.

Madero formed a cabinet composed of men of good stand-
ing in the business world, who endeavored to make plans for
improving the social and political condition of the people ;
but the work was slow and was hindered by the increasing
insurrections, to cope with which taxed all the resources
of the government. In March, 1912, General Orozco
headed an anti-Maderista revolution in Chihuahua, having
turned against his former associate. Juarez and Chihuahua

202 MEXICO

were captured by the revolutionists and a Federal army
under General Gonzales-Sala was totally defeated. Madero
then sent another army against Orozco, commanded by
General Huerta, who defeated and scattered the revolution-
ists. Orozco's defeat, however, had no effect in checking
the insurrections elsewhere, which continued unabated.

By the end of 1912 very little had been accomplished in
spite of Madero's preelection promises. His failure to
divide the lands and increase wages had caused widespread
discontent among the illiterate natives who had supported
his revolutionary movement. Moreover, it was asserted
that he had placed 142 members of the Madero family in
important offices, and had granted valuable concessions
to the American oil interests in return for having financed
his revolution against Diaz.

In October, 1912, intense excitement was caused by a
revolutionary outbreak at Vera Cruz, started by General
Felix Diaz, a nephew of the former president. He had been
Chief of Police in Mexico City under the Diaz government,
and was extremely popular in army circles. General Diaz
tried to induce the Federal troops at Vera Cruz to revolt
against Madero, but failing in the attempt, he was arrested,
court-martialled and sentenced to death. His friends, how-
ever, succeeded in obtaining a stay of sentence, and pending
a new trial he was removed to Santiago Prison in Mexico
City. Among the prisoners there, at that time, was Gen-
eral Bernardo Reyes, one of the foremost men of Mexico,
who had been closely associated with President Diaz. He
had been arrested about a year before while trying to organ-
ize a revolution against Madero in northern Mexico.

On February 8, 1913, several regiments in the capital
revolted, and, at the same time, a party of military cadets,
storming the prison, released the two generals. Declaring
war against Madero, Diaz and Reyes headed the rebels and

FROM DIAZ TO HUERTA 203

captured the citadel and armory, where large quantities
of arms and ammunition were stored. Madero, who held
the National Palace, ordered an immediate attack to be
made on the rebels. General Huerta, with a few regiments
which remained loyal, made repeated attempts to capture
the citadel, but the government troops were driven back
with heavy losses. In the first day's fighting, General
Reyes was killed, and several rebel officers were captured,
including General Ruiz, one of the veteran officers of the
Mexican army, and a man highly esteemed. By order of
Gustavo Madero, the President's brother, Ruiz was shot
without even the formality of a court-martial, an act which
excited great indignation even among the Maderistas.

For several days the fighting raged between the govern-
ment and rebel forces, no quarter being given on either side,
while field and machine guns hurled shot and shell through
the streets, causing widespread havoc. At last, the repre-
sentatives of foreign powers in the capital protested to the
President, urging him to make terms with the rebels or
resign, in order to restore peace. Madero, however, stub-
bornly refused, declaring that he would fight until the last
cartridge, even if it resulted in the city being laid in ruins.
As the result of excitement and nervous strain, it is said, he
began to show signs of being mentally unbalanced, and told
some of his supporters that the spirits of Oliver Cromwell
and Napoleon Bonaparte were urging him on to victory.

On February 18, at a special session of the Senate, a
resolution was adopted, declaring President Madero inca-
pable of holding office. The President's military chiefs,
the Generals Huerta and Blanquet — officers of the regular
army — were ordered to stop the fighting and arrest the
President. They sent two young officers, Lieutenant-
Colonel Riveroll and Colonel Izquierdo, to Madero, to inform
him of the Senate's decision. On receiving the message,

204 MEXICO

Madero, infuriated, drew his revolver and shot Riveroll,
killing him instantly, while his aide shot and killed Izquierdo.
The deposed President then attempted to escape, but was
arrested and locked up in his apartments, under guard. In
the meantime an armistice had been arranged with the
rebels.

The same evening, the President's brother, Gustavo
Madero, was arrested and taken to the citadel, where
General Mondragon was in command. In retaliation for
the shooting of General Ruiz, Mondragon ordered the pris-
oner to be executed immediately, and was deaf to all plead-
ings for mercy. Even when Gustavo Madero offered to
give up all his wealth if his life were spared, the General was
immovable. "Take him out and treat him as he treated
Ruiz," he commanded sternly. In the courtyard of the
citadel, a few minutes later, the unfortunate man was shot
by a squad of soldiers.

When the news of the tragedy reached Senora Madero, the
President's wife, she begged the authorities to send her
husband to the State Penitentiary for safety, fearing that he
would be assassinated if he remained at the National Palace.
At the end of five days her request was granted, and late at
night two automobiles left the palace bound for the peni-
tentiary. In one of them rode Senor Madero and in the
other the ex-vice-president, Senor Pino Suarez. On the
way both prisoners were shot and killed by the soldiers
who accompanied them. The assassins then riddled the
automobiles with bullets and returned to headquarters
with the story that a party of sympathizers had attempted
to stop the cars and rescue the prisoners, who were acci-
dentally killed in the resulting mele*e.

Since this tragic event occurred, various stories have
been told as to what actually happened. It has even been
asserted that Generals Huerta and Blanquet were directly

SOME NOTABLE MEXICANS.
Prominent Characters in Recent Stirring Events.

Senor Madero, Late President of Mexico General Carranza, Leader of the " Con-
(assassinated February, 1913). stitutionalists."

General Huerta, President of Mexico.

General Felix Diaz, nephew of a former Senor de la Barra, an able Mexican
President. statesman.

FROM DIAZ TO HUERTA 205

responsible for the assassinations. From the most reliable
evidence that has been gathered, however, it seems fairly
certain that the soldiers acted without authority. In
fact one of them afterwards confessed that before starting
out they had agreed to kill Senor Madero, in retaliation for
having shot the young officer who informed him of his
deposition from office.

The news of the fighting in the capital, the threatened
destruction of property and the danger which menaced
foreign residents caused great concern throughout the world,
and especially in the United States, where the excite-
ment was increased by the assassination of the ex-President.
There were rumors at the time, that the United States
would intervene; but Mr. Taft, then President, firmly
refused to take any step of this kind, intimating that he
would leave the settlement of the Mexican question to his
successor, Mr. Woodrow Wilson, who became President in
March, 1913.

In the meantime, General Huerta had formed a provi-
sional government with himself as President, and had re-
ceived the support of General Felix Diaz and his followers.
Energetic efforts were made by the new government to
restore order. Realizing that the situation needed a strong
hand and an iron will such as General Huerta seemed to
possess, the diplomatic representatives at the capital, with
one exception, agreed to recognize him as Provisional Presi-
dent. Recognition, however, was withheld by President
Wilson, pending an investigation which he decided to make.

It should be added, that at the close of President Madero's
administration, insurrections had been in progress in certain
parts of northern Mexico, while the Zapatistas had con-
tinued their raids in the south. Following the assassination
of President Madero, fresh revolutions broke out in the
north, when some of the revolutionists who had been oppos-

206 MEXICO

ing the government of President Madero joined the opponents
of the government of President Huerta. Fighting between
the government troops and the revolutionists continued.

In July, 1913, President Wilson sent Mr. John Lind to
Mexico City as his confidential agent, to investigate and
report concerning the Mexican situation. Mr. Lind, it was
said, informed General Huerta that it was the desire of the
United States government that fighting between Federal-
ists and revolutionists should cease; that an armistice
should be arranged, and be scrupulously observed ; that a
free and early election should take place in which all
Mexicans should participate and be willing to accept the
results; also that General Huerta should agree not to be
a presidential candidate. Whatever the ultimatum was,
General Huerta did not retire, and some weeks later, when
the Mexican elections took place he received a majority
vote. It was subsequently declared that the elections had
been illegally conducted and that another presidential
election would be held in July, 1914. Pending this elec-
tion, General Huerta, with the approval of the Mexican
Congress, was permitted to retain office.

Apparently as the result of information he had received,
President Wilson still refused to recognize President
Huerta's government. It was reported that General Huerta
had received another ultimatum from Washington, declar-
ing that the recent elections had been improperly conducted,
and that his right to the presidential office could not be recog-
nized by the United States. Again, it was said, the General
had been urged to retire, and that it had been intimated
that neither General Blanquet nor any other follower of his
would be acceptable to President Wilson's administration.
In reply to this General Huerta, it was reported, refused
emphatically to resign, and declared that no foreign power
had any right to dictate terms to Mexico.

FROM DIAZ TO HUEETA 207

In the exercise of his power as President, General Huerta
showed himself to be a second Diaz, and displayed similar
energy and determination. Finding that a number of
deputies were conspiring against his government, he caused
them to be arrested and imprisoned. When a new congress
met in November, 1913, he justified his action by declaring
that the offending deputies had been in sympathy with the
rebels in the north, and that the chamber had reeked with
treason to the country. "In an emergency," he added,
"the highest patriotism overshadows ordinary law."

The personality of General Huerta is remarkably inter-
esting. He is about sixty years old, a native of Jalisco and
of mixed Indian and Spanish descent. A graduate of the
Chapultepec Military School, he attained the rank of general
through sheer ability, having distinguished himself in several
Indian campaigns. During the Madero revolution he
supported President Diaz, but afterwards swore allegiance
to the Madero government. In appearance, General
Huerta is tall, thickly built, brisk and athletic. A bluff old
soldier, he cares little for high society, and prefers to sit
with a few friends in a cafe. He is a man of few words.
When he comes across any knot he cuts it : to untie it
would take too long. He is a hard worker, spending six-
teen hours daily in his office at the National Palace. Al-
though a man of strong will and a strict disciplinarian, he is
immensely popular with the army. His personal bravery is
unquestioned.

Owing to the opposition of the United States and secret
influences arrayed against his government, General Huerta
found it difficult to float a foreign loan for the purpose of cov-
ering public expenses, including the cost of maintaining the
army. Encouraged by the embarrassment of the govern-
ment, hordes of revolutionists overran northern Mexico, where
they have destroyed towns and laid waste the country.

208 MEXICO

The most formidable of the revolutionary armies is led
by Venustiano Carranza, once an obscure country lawyer,
who became Governor of Coahuila through the upheavals of
recent revolutions. Carranza calls himself the candidate
of the " Constitutionalists," and has already appointed a
cabinet in order to be ready to assume the presidency when
his army enters Mexico City — over a thousand miles from
his base of operations.

Some of the other revolutionists are led by notorious
bandits, such as Zapata, and even General Pancho Villa, a
prominent figure in northern Mexico, has been described by
the Mexican government as an ex-horse-thief and outlaw.
Certain other "generals" and " colonels" are simply bare-
footed, ignorant Indians, wearing the straw sombrero and
red serape, who ride at the head of their forces, machete in
hand. Their sole object is loot. Any kind of wild idea,
from communism to the most rampant anarchy, finds ready
acceptance among such men. In northern Mexico, for
example, there are many "majoristas," who are fighting
against both Huerta and Carranza, their principal aim being
to destroy property and bring about the establishment of a
community in land.

During the campaigns in northern Mexico terrible atroc-
ities have been committed by the revolutionists. The once
prosperous cities of Chihuahua and Durango, both having
large populations and abundant wealth, have been ravaged
and partly destroyed. Even the leaders who have some
claim to be considered civilized have found it impossible
to restrain the excesses of their followers, a large proportion
of whom are ignorant Indian peons, brutalized by pulque
and mescal. In every town they have captured, scores of
non-combatants have been killed, women have been out-
raged and much property has been burned. Owing to the
losses sustained by their subjects, it is estimated that

FEOM DIAZ TO HUEETA 209

foreign governments already have claims against Mexico
amounting to over fifty million dollars.

In every battle the revolutionists have ignored the rules
of civilized warfare, giving no quarter, and shooting all •
government officers they have captured. Hundreds of ^
Federal soldiers, taken prisoners, have also shared the same
fate. In one instance, reported by a newspaper correspon-
dent, a mob of drink-inflamed revolutionists, armed with
knives and machetes, attacked a party of Federal prisoners,
who were hacked and stabbed until death ended their suf-
ferings. The revolutionary bands, it has been said, ac-
knowledge no supreme commander, and unite only when
besieging a city. All the leaders want to be President, and
those who know Mexico are confident that whatever hap-
pens the rival generals will eventually end by fighting among
themselves.

It is difficult at this time to understand exactly what is
going on beneath the diplomatic surface; but from all
accounts it seems to be certain that none of the European
powers are desirous of interfering in Mexico excepting in
case of actual outrage to their subjects. Nevertheless
there are indications that they are becoming impatient at
the lack of any definite results from the efforts of the United
States to cause the establishment of a government in Mexico
City that would be satisfactory alike to Federalists and
revolutionists. It is also realized that something more
powerful than moral pressure will be needed to put an
end to the present reign of anarchy in Mexico's northern
states.

CHAPTER XII

THE MACHINERY OF GOVERNMENT

FLOATING over the public buildings of Mexico may be
seen the national flag of the Republic, a tricolor of red,
white and green which in some cases bears the arms of
Mexico, the traditional eagle on the cactus, and the letters
"E. U. de M." (Estados Unidos de Mexico), meaning the
United States of Mexico.

Outside of the Republic this phrase is so seldom heard
that one is apt to forget that this is the country's political
title. The Mexican Republic is, in fact, a confederation
r twenty-seven States, two territories and the Federal
I District in which the capital stands, formed after the pattern
of the United States of America, each State having a gov-
ernor and a state legislature. There is also a Federal Con-
gress, with its place of assembly in Mexico City, which, like
its prototype at Washington, is composed of a Senate and
Chamber of Deputies. It meets twice a year; and in it
each State is represented by two senators, while deputies
are elected for every forty thousand of the population.

All this sounds very democratic, but the truth is that the
Mexican representative system is merely a paper one;
for the suffrage is so severely limited that only a very small
percentage of the population are ever allowed to cast votes.
Politics in Mexico are, in fact, an elaborate sham. There
is practically no opposition party in the houses, where
discussions are academic, and can only end in the fulfilment
of those resolutions which have weeks before been made

210

TYPICAL REVOLUTIONISTS.
Leaders of the Men who have Terrorized Mexico.

General Villa, Commanding in Chihua-
hua.

General Blanco, Commanding in Nuevo
Leon.

Emiliano Zapata, the Bandit Chief.

General Obregon, a commander of the General Benavantina, Chief Treasurer

Constitutional Army. of the Rebel Army.

THE MACHINERY OF GOVERNMENT 211

in the Cadena or Chapultepec Castle by the President.
Under this elaborate political fiction President Diaz wisely
cloaked his dictatorship.

To these burlesques of legislative chambers every citizen
is eligible, with the single exception of priests, who are
excluded from both houses. Senators and deputies are
each paid at the rate of $1500 a year. The President is
elected every six years, though, as explained in the pre-
ceding chapter, this regulation has fallen into abeyance
for more than thirty years.

While Mexico has the usual legislative assemblies, it also
has numerous law courts. These are divided into district
courts, and at the head of them is the Supreme Court, pre--
sided over by fifteen judges. The legal procedure is based
on the Roman law. In the criminal courts cases are con-
ducted in a manner very similar to that which prevails in
France. There are judges of instruction, who institute
proceedings, refer them to the public prosecutor and finally
present the case before the jury. The latter consists of
nine persons (thirty are summoned) , native or foreign, who
must have occupations, education or independent means.
There are also courts of lesser jurisdiction, like the American
police courts, and alcaldes or local magistrates, who ad-
minister a summary jurisdiction.

Though all this sounds very well, yet with the possible
exception of the unfortunate erring peons, no one in Mexico
ever gets quick justice. In the courts the prevailing rule
is manana — to-morrow — and from the judge to the usher
they are all faithful to this magic word. But the greatest
difficulty which confronts the Mexican courts is that in-
volved in cases which concern foreigners. The whole
policy of the Mexican authorities is to be civil to foreigners,
and in legal matters this is as obvious as it is in administra-
tive. Sometimes, however, Mexican judges are found too

212 MEXICO

favorable to their fellow-countrymen, and then it requires
the interference of the President to tip the scales of justice.
Such a case was reported to me. A foreign company,
so I was told, ran a cable line through some land belonging
to a Mexican, with the understanding that settlement was
to be made afterwards. Some ground was also occupied
for other purposes. Although no damage was done to the
property, the company offered the landowner a generous
sum as compensation, but he refused to accept it, and the
case was referred to the local judge, his intimate friend.
This judge ordered the company to purchase the entire
estate for $30,000 as compensation. The company ap-
pealed to the Supreme Court, which upheld the decision.
The case was then brought to the notice of President Diaz.
He summoned the members of the court before him and said
in effect: "This won't do. You'll have to reconsider that
decision. We are inviting foreign capital to Mexico, and
if foreigners discover that they cannot get justice we shall
lose millions."

The Supreme Court thereupon ordered the local judge to
give the case another hearing. This time he decided that
the company must pay $20,000. Again they appealed to
the Supreme Court, again that court upheld the decision,
and again resort was had to the President, who, however,
this time refused to interfere. When the company declined
to pay, the court announced that their property would be
seized and sold at public auction on a certain date. The
company retaliated by pointing out that they were the only
corporation rich enough to buy the property if the auction
took place; and in any case they would see that the facts
of the gross injustice should be published in all the leading
newspapers of the world so that foreigners might learn what
sort of treatment they might expect in Mexico. This
threat reached Senor Limantour, the Minister of Finance,

THE MACHINERY OF GOVERNMENT 213

and he hurried off to the President, warning him that some-
thing must be done at once. President Diaz thereupon
ordered the Supreme Court to fix the damages at $3000,
the sum originally offered by the company, and this was
paid in final settlement. "But/' added my informant,
" suppose there had been no Diaz to interfere! What
protection should we have had? "

The chief triumph of the Diaz regime was the policing
of the Republic by mounted police, or "rurales," who
keep order in the country districts ; and an excellent and
intelligent body of men are one of the bulwarks of the
government. But it is perhaps in the capital that one is
best able to gauge the astounding change which has been
witnessed during a single generation. Twenty-five years
ago Mexico City was the prey of as foul an army of beggars,
thieves and cut-throats as could be found in any city in
the world. Murders were committed by half dozens every
night. In the awful rookeries where the scum of the city —
thieves, offal-carriers, rag-pickers, pulque-sellers — congre-
gated, crimes of all kinds were planned and carried out with
impunity. The government flooded the city with police,
but at first it looked as if the forces of disorder must win.
When the electric lights were first installed in the city,
the vagabonds cut the wires night after night in the neigh-
borhood of San Lazaro, one of the lowest quarters, that
they might carry out their robberies unmolested. Even
in the Alameda and the fashionable quarters of the city the
foulest murders were committed, and it was even suggested
that the police were in league with some of the worst crim-
inals.

But the government was not to be beaten. The arm of
the law was stretched out into the worst holes and crannies
of Mexico City, policemen were stationed at every corner.
Prisons were full to choking, and those criminals caught

214 MEXICO

red-handed were transported to the hot lands in southern
Mexico as plantation slaves. The result has been more
than good. To-day Mexico City is one of the most orderly
places in the world. One can walk from end to end at night,
unguarded, with little fear of being even annoyed.

But if the Mexican police are good, they are very often
arrogant. In street rows they will arrest everybody within
sight, and woe betide the man who resists them. The truth
is, the Mexican policeman takes himself very seriously.
Just as every French soldier was taught to believe that there
was a marshal's baton in his knapsack, so the Mexican
"sereno" hoodwinks himself into the hope that he is an
embryo Monsieur Lecoq, which self-conceit betrays him
into a certain officiousness and anxiety to arrest any and
everybody on the slightest provocation.

I heard of an amusing instance which illustrates this.
An American visitor to Mexico City was seized with a bad
cold and compelled to keep his bed at his hotel. One
morning, two policemen marched into his room with a
stretcher and told him he must be taken to the hospital.
On his demanding why, they replied, " It has been reported
that you have typhus, and you must come immediately."
They strapped him on the stretcher, took him to the hos-
pital, where he was deprived of his clothes, given a sort of
hospital nightgown, and put into a ward with a lot of ty-
phus patients. He did not see any doctor for a day or so.
When that official did arrive, he asked, " What are you doing
here ? " The American replied, "They say I've got typhus."
The doctor said, " You've got nothing of the kind, so get
out, seiior." When the American went to find his clothes,
they had been stolen. He borrowed a blanket, and wrap-
ping it round him tried to sneak back to his hotel through
the side streets. On his way he was arrested on the charge
of "appearing in public in an indecent costume," was taken

THE RURALES.
A squadron of Mexico's famous mounted police.

THE AWKWARD SQUAD.
Country policemen answering the roll call.

THE MACHINERY OF GOVERNMENT 215

to the police station and detained there a day or two more,
only being released when the U. S. consul interfered.
When he complained to the authorities, they simply laughed
at him, seeming to consider it a great joke on the Ameri-
cano. Indeed, one jovial official remarked, "You came
to Mexico to see sights, didn't you? Well, you're seeing
them. Then why complain ?"

Another case which ended in tragedy was that of a
clerk who, buying a revolver from a friend, was putting it in
the case when it went off, shooting the latter and inflicting
a serious wound. A request to take the deposition of the
wounded man was sent to the local magistrate, but he was
drunk and could not come. Friends of the wounded man,
having procured a stretcher, a journey of seven miles was
made to the house of the next magistrate, who took the de-
position, which was witnessed by the mayor of the village
and the chief of police. The man was then sent to Mexico
City for treatment, the clerk and two other friends accom-
panying him. He was being removed from the train when
an officious policeman refused to allow him to be taken to
the hospital, arrested the whole party as " suspicious per-
sons " and conducted them to the police station, where they
were confined all night. Receiving no medical attention,
the victim of the accident died from the effects of the
excitement and exposure. The clerk was then taken back
to the place where the accident had occurred, and put into
prison, charged with murder. It was only after expensive
litigation that he was liberated.

Yet another case. A drunken Mexican accosted an
American clerk in the main street of a provincial town,
demanding money. The young fellow pushed him away,
and the man dropped dead, undoubtedly from heart disease,
as it was proved afterwards that he had been drinking
for days and had some heart ailment. The clerk was im-

216 MEXICO

mediately arrested. The next proceeding was taken by the
local magistrate, who called in a butcher and ordered him
to make a post mortem examination. After carving up
the body of the dead man, the butcher reported that the
internal organs showed signs of a blow; and on this evi-
dence the young American was committed for trial for
murder, and kept in solitary confinement. When I heard
the story, he had been in prison for more than six months,
all efforts to get him out on bail having been in vain. The
law's delays in Mexico are very tedious, and many months
elapse before even in ordinary cases a trial is held. When
the magistrate was asked why he did not call in a doctor to
make a proper post-mortem examination, his reply was that
the butcher was more convenient and the law allowed him
to get a substitute if a doctor was not at hand. "Do you
think that a butcher is competent to judge in such a serious
case?" asked the defendant's lawyer. The magistrate
shrugged his shoulders and replied, "Quien sabe?" (Who
knows?).

In Mexico the death penalty is inflicted by shooting, a
squad of soldiers being the executioners. This, of course,
refers to formal executions, of which many hundreds take
place in the course of the year. But there are informal
death sentences carried out in any number. Quite a usual
way of getting rid of a difficult prisoner is the following:
While being taken from one district to another, under armed
escort, he is told by his guards to go ahead, and is then shot
in the back, the cause of his death being reported as "shot
while attempting to escape." This is permissible under the
old Spanish Ley fuga or Law of Flight. Highwaymen,
too, are dealt with summarily, being shot at sight. A
year or two ago some desperados robbed a pay-car on the
Mexican Central Railway near Cuernavaca. They were
caught, taken to the scene of the robbery and without

THE MACHINEEY OF GOVERNMENT 217

a semblance of a trial shot on the spot. At the time of
my visit to the capital there were thirty-one criminals
awaiting the death penalty in Belem Prison.

A few of the new Mexican prisons are conducted on
modern principles, and the prisoners are employed at
various trades. The old prisons, however, are notoriously
bad, and can only be compared with those of the middle
ages. An English writer who was confined in one of them
declares that their management and discipline are incom-
patible with modern civilization. Belem Prison in Mexico
City, he says, abounds in dark, unventilated, underground
cells, which are overrun with vermin ; there is no attempt
at sanitation, and deaths from typhus or jail fever are of
frequent occurrence. The prisoners, he adds, are half
starved and are beaten or tortured for petty offences.
They have neither work nor recreation. Important polit-
ical offenders are usually kept " incommunicado," which
means solitary confinement for long intervals.

Next to policemen, soldiers are much in evidence in Mex-
ico, the army being an important national institution.
The country is divided into several military districts, and in
each of these is a certain quota of troops. Nearly every
town of any size has a commandancia or barracks. As
mentioned in another chapter, most of the Mexican officers
are trained at Chapultepec. Over a third of the commis-
sioned members of the army graduate from that institu-
tion. The student binds himself for seven years' service,
and should he be discharged or refuse to serve, he must re-
pay the government about ten dollars for each month he
has remained in the academy. If there is a war, all retired
graduates can be compelled to report for service. There is
no conscription in Mexico and the soldier's pay is very small.

The Mexican standing army amounts to between 25,000
and 30,000 men; but this does not represent the total

218 MEXICO

forces of the Republic, which at a time of emergency could
summon 86,000 reserves to the colors. Of the standing
army 20,000 odd are infantry, 2000 artillery and 5000
cavalry, while there are small corps of engineers and others.
Infantry and cavalry are armed with the Spanish Mauser
rifles and carbines. The headquarters of the army are in
Mexico City, and several battalions of infantry and regi-
ments of cavalry are stationed there at all times.

Mexican soldiers usually wear either a blue cloth or white
linen uniform, with a blue or white military cap or glazed
leather Austrian-shaped kepi. One of the artillery regi-
ments has a uniform of German appearance, blue with red
facings, and a bright, spiked brass helmet. Some regiments
wear the national sombrero, and in the country districts
the nacionales sometimes wear a pudding-basin-shaped
straw hat with a ribbon round it. All the cavalrymen
have a carbine strapped to their backs, and carry revolvers
as well as swords. The majority of the troops are Indians
of half or whole blood.

Some of the crack regiments are presentable enough, but
the average Mexican soldier looks somewhat undisciplined
and sloppy. As to their righting qualities there is a great
difference of opinion, some authorities declaring them
cowardly and untrustworthy, while others assert that they
are brave and stubborn fighters. The truth is that there
are great differences in the methods of recruiting. While
the nacionales, who are equivalent to our militia, are for
the most part a well -set-up, loyal body of men, the regulars
are quite untrustworthy and have little or no patriotism.
The explanation is simple. Most of them are men who as
a penalty for some crime have been sentenced to serve in
the army, thus forcing them into the service, ill-drilled and
with little or no knowledge of the use of firearms, so that it
is scarcely to be expected that they will make good soldiers.

CHAPTER XIII

A MEXICAN PARADISE

"Go to Cuernavaca," said an American friend, as I sat
by a diminutive oil stove in his office in Mexico City one
morning, discussing the cold weather which had lasted
through the first weeks of November. " Cuernavaca/'
he continued, "is a place of orange groves and flowers;
it is always warm, and it has the finest climate in the world."
This certainly sounded attractive, and as I was determined
to get thawed out after my chilly experiences in the capital,
I decided to take his advice. The next morning found me
on a train bound for the mid- winter paradise.

Cuernavaca is about seventy-four miles from the city,
and the journey is one that never loses its charm. Not
only is the route of the Mexican Central Railway marvel-
lously rich in scenic attractions, but it also has some his-
torical interest. It follows, in fact, part of the ancient
mountain trail by which the looting Spaniards passed to
and fro between the oceans in the old romantic days.
Loaded with Spanish goods, the galleons would sail from
Barcelona or Cadiz for Vera Cruz, where they would dis-
charge their cargoes. A large portion of this freight was
taken overland, from the Gulf of Mexico to the Pacific
coast, being carried in huge carts drawn by oxen, over
rough trails through the wondrous wooded mountains. The
port of Acapulco, on the Pacific, was a busy place in those
days, and it was there that the galleons from the Philippine
Islands and other parts of the East unloaded their precious

219

220 MEXICO

freights of gold and jewels, the silks of China, pearls, jades
and ivory. Packed in the lumbering carts, this treasure
was borne over the mountains to Vera Cruz, where it was
shipped for Spain.

From the train one sees to-day the long lines of patient
burros threading their way up and down the mountain-
side with loads of fruit and farm produce from the hot
lands; and in this sleepy, unprogressive country it is easy
to picture those ancient pack-trains commanded by the
filibusters of Cortes. The railway has already reached
Balsas, the centre of a rich mining district in the moun-
tains; it will some day reach Acapulco, and it is safe to
prophesy for the old port a wonderful trade revival.

On leaving Mexico City, the train crosses the plain and
then starts an ascent, winding in and out among the moun-
tain peaks, always on an increasing gradient, till before the
lucky passengers one of the most wonderful views it is
possible to imagine unfolds itself. Stretching to the horizon,
which is broken with mountains, lies the Valley of Mexico,
as the plain upon which the capital stands is called, dotted
over with villages and lakes. At this great height Mexico
City looks like a toy city, flashing a silver gray in the sun-
shine and dominated by the two towers of the cathedral,
reduced to pygmy size. As the train climbs higher, the
semi-tropical vegetation is left behind and the region of
pines is entered. Far away among the ridges occasional
patches of snow can be seen, and now and again a glimpse
may be caught of the great snow-capped peak of Popocat-
epetl dwarfing the lesser mountains. The highest point
is reached at La Cima (the summit) 9895 feet above sea-
level. Then the train passes the stations of Toro (the bull)
and Tres Marias (Three Marys), the latter so called in ref-
erence to three pine-covered peaks near by.

A road noticeably good in a country where the roads for

A MEXICAN PARADISE 221

the most part are execrable runs from Mexico City to Cuer-
navaca, crossing the line at Tres Marias and disappearing
among the pines. This road was built for motoring; the
track of an old road was partly used and miles of new road
were made, the money for the undertaking being sub-
scribed by motor enthusiasts, assisted by the government.
So excellent is the road and so direct the course it takes
that it is actually quicker to motor to Cuernavaca than to
take the train.

Even at this great altitude peons may be seen ploughing,
and in many places the soil seems to be black and rich.
Mosses and flowers of northerly regions are seen growing
among the rocks. The air, even in summer, is often
quite nipping at Tres Marias.

At the gaunt, gray peak of Ajusco, over thirteen thou-
sand feet high, the train reaches the top of the ridge and
begins the descent into the Valley of Cuernavaca. You
see then the other panorama of the mountain range stretch-
ing westward ; a sea of rolling hills and ancient lava-flows
miles in length, with here and there small lakes and Indian
villages dotted over the valley, almost hidden between the
mountains, the grayness of the scene brightened by emerald
patches of sugar-cane.

Cuernavaca was called by the old Indians Cuauhnahuac,
meaning "Near the trees." The Spaniards — forerunners
of American abbreviators — shortened the name to Cuer-
navaca, meaning "Cow's horn." Running through the
town is a deep, rocky ravine covered with trees, which prob-
ably gave rise to the ancient name. The pretty Spanish-
Moorish looking town, with its cream-colored houses, some
flat-roofed, others red-tiled, stands on the side of a vast
valley, ringed in by volcanic hills and mountains. Sur-
rounding it are plantations of rice and coffee, orchards
of oranges and groves of bananas, mangos and mameys.

222

It is 4921 feet above the sea and combines a tropic warmth
with a mild and temperate climate, making it an almost
perfect resort for invalids, particularly for those suffering
from lung or bronchial troubles.

When I left Mexico City at half -past seven in the morning,
the sky was cloudy, the sun was invisible and the air chill.
In Cuernavaca there was a clear blue sky, and the sun was
shining with all the warmth of a summer day. Passengers
who wore their heavy wraps and overcoats were glad to
take them off, and were soon perspiring in this balmy at-
mosphere. Cuernavaca profits by the great mountain range
which lies between it and the capital, effectually guarding
it from the northern blasts and the depressing clouds which
accompany them.

The town is about half a mile from the station, and being
shut in by the hills cannot be seen from the train. Outside
the station there were three little street-cars, each drawn
by two mules ; these take the passengers and their luggage
down to the town for eight cents apiece. People who are
more exclusive can take a carriage for half a dollar and get
their bones well shaken in riding over the cobble-stone
streets. I rode in one of the tram-cars with several
blanketed Indian senores, some senoras in their rebosas and
a few white fellow-travellers. On the way the hotel porter
pointed me out a hill commanding a fine view of the valley.
This is the site of an American model city for well-to-do
Americans and others, which is to be laid out with trees
and flowers and equipped with all modern conveniences.
Already several picturesque white stone bungalows, with
red-tiled roofs, have been built. Fine golf links have also
been laid down. The scheme has obtained much support,
and there are so many people anxious to join the colony
that the spot looks like becoming one of the most popular
resorts in Mexico.

O -s

4 O)

? 1

A MEXICAN PARADISE 223

Our car, which took the lead, went merrily on its way
for a time, and then through the reckless driving of our
Indian Jehu ran off the line. All the passengers got out
and lent a hand in lifting the car back on to the metals.
Later we crossed a fine stone bridge over the ravine or bar-
ranca, and then passed through a pretty little plaza with the
inevitable fountain and bright flower beds. Growing all
over the rocks in the ravine, I noticed a beautiful convol-
vulus of sky-blue. This I afterwards saw in other parts
of Mexico. Then the car clattered down the main street,
paved with rough cobble-stones and lined with picturesque
two-storied houses with their flat roofs and barred windows.
Through the wide-open doorways there were occasional
glimpses to be had of quaint patios, cool fountains and
flowers of many colors. Thus we progressed to the main
plaza, planted with orange trees, where the car stopped.

There are two hotels in Cuernavaca, both under American
management. The one I chose had been an old Spanish
mansion, and was to some extent brought up-to-date to
serve as a hotel. In the large tile-paved patio, open to the
sky, were two pretty little gardens filled with tropical plants
and flowers, and in each was a fountain of sparkling water.
My room, with cool, tiled floor, seemed quite refreshing,
and the heavy lattice to the windows was a welcome pro-
tection against the blaze of the sun which would otherwise
have poured in. For the first time since reaching Mexico
I really felt grateful for shade and a cool breeze. My
window commanded a beautiful view of the old cathedral
and several other time-worn churches, with their soft red
walls and quaint gray towers. Later on, when I walked
around the beautiful little town, I could understand why
it is the Mecca of kodak fiends and the despair of artists who
find its glowing tints and wonderful effects so hard to catch.

Adjoining the main plaza is the market-place, with its

224 MEXICO

thick stone walls and red-tiled roofs. Here, every morning,
the Indian women are found selling their wares, — oranges,
bananas, grenadines, mangoes and other tropical fruits,
with a varied assortment of dry and fresh beans and other
vegetables, — squatting patiently on the ground with their
little piles of produce before them. The stalls of the
pottery sellers, with their bright red stock-in-trade, give
a dash of color to the scene. In the centre of the market-
place, which is open to the sky, is the circular stone foun-
tain where the market people get their water. Round the
market square, under the massive portales, are some queer,
old-fashioned shops or general stores.

In the middle of the town stands the Government Palace,
a beautiful little building of white stone, which was once the
palace of Corte*s, and was finished in 1531. The garden
here, although it was December, was ablaze with flowers
of many hues — bright red hibiscus, great masses of ma-
genta bougainvillea, geraniums, roses and lilies, set in a
velvety green lawn, and over all the orange and grape-
fruit trees loaded with fragrant blossoms and golden fruit.
From the rear of the palace there is a magnificent view of
Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl, towering above the clouds,
their snow-caps glistening bright beneath the deep blue
sky. In this picturesque old palace meets the legislature
of the State of Morelos, of which Cuernavaca is the capital.

Not far from here is the venerable Cathedral of San Fran-
cisco, founded by Franciscan monks in 1529. This also
owed something to Cortes, having originally been a convent
which he liberally endowed; in later years it became the
parish church, and has now reached its present dignity.
It is really a series of churches and chapels, with connect-
ing roofs and walls. In the main tower there is a clock
which was once in the Cathedral of Segovia and was a
present to Cortes from Charles the Fifth.

A MEXICAN PARADISE 225

The neighborhood of Cuernavaca is full of reminiscence
of the Conqueror. Close to the town is the hacienda of
Atlacomulco, once his property, and still owned by his
descendants, the present proprietor being the Duke of
Terranova and Monteleone of Italy. In the ancient
hacienda house, constructed of massive stone after the
fashion of the early Spanish builders, there are preserved
some great wooden chests which are said to have been
brought from Spain by Cortes. Some large brown earthen-
ware jars, which are carefully guarded, are also reputed to
have been in use in his time. Most of the estate is still
devoted to the cultivation of sugar-cane, and sugar refining
is its chief industry.

During his short-lived empire, Maximilian had a pretty
home, known as Olindo, near Cuernavaca, and here he used
to retire with the Empress Carlotta for a few days' rest
from cares of state.

I spent a very pleasant week in Cuernavaca, strolling
daily about its cobble-paved streets which wind up and
down hill, charmed with its romantic old houses and
churches. With its background of rolling mountains, the
deep blue sky, its red roofs, sunny gardens and quaint
byways, Cuernavaca bears a striking resemblance to one
of the old Italian towns; but it is more than picturesque
— it is unusually clean and well-kept. The last observa-
tion also applies to some of its inhabitants, for even the
Indians look clean, and their cotton clothing is more often
white than gray-tinted. This may be due to the fact that
the town has an excellent water-supply and a fine public
bath.

A beautiful spot in the old town is the Borda Garden.
Near the cathedral is the mansion built by Jose de la Borda,
a Mexican silver king who lived in the good old days when
George the Second was king of England. Marvellous tales

226 MEXICO

are told of this Mexican Croesus, who dug from forty to
I fifty million dollars in silver from his mines at Tlalpujahua,
; Taxco and Zacatecas. He was a generous patron to the
1 church, and spent a million dollars or more on the edifice
at Taxco, fifty miles from Cuernavaca. Jose was a French
Canadian who had wandered into Mexico, and there made
three fortunes and lost two because of his devotion to
mother church. In the State of Hidalgo he built several
churches, and his devoutness was such that after losing
\ his second fortune, the Archbishop of Mexico returned to
him a magnificent diamond-studded ornament which he
had presented to the church at Taxco. The sale of this
altar-jewel brought him a hundred thousand dollars, which
proved the foundation of another fortune of many mil-
lions.

Long ago the Bordas disappeared from Cuernavaca and
the glory of their old mansion has also departed. By
paying twenty-five centavos any one may enter the old
garden which adjoins the long, rambling house, with its
tiled courts and patios. Here are trees and flowers of the
tropics, terraced slopes, lakelets, cascades and fountains
which in all are said to have cost a million dollars. The
whole place is in a state of decay, but there is beauty even
in its ruin. The stuccoed walls and palisades are a soft
pink tint, streaked with green moss ; the stone paving and
steps are also softened by the hand of time; the statuary
and fountains all show the same signs of neglected age.
On the little lake, bordered with mango trees, which were
loaded with fruit when J visited the place, was a thriving
colony of swans and ducks, but otherwise there was no
vestige of life in the old pleasure-ground. At two corners of
the walls are quaint stone arbors from which there are mag-
nificent views of the valley and the rugged mountains.
One of these nooks overlooks the Indian village of San

. I

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1

A MEXICAN PARADISE 227

Antone, with its crumbling stone church, very much like
one of the ancient wayside churches of southern Italy.

I spent many a restful hour in the old Borda Garden,
and derived a good deal of amusement from the walls of the
shady arbors, which bore hundreds of inscriptions by en-
thusiastic visitors, chiefly American tourists from such
romantic places as " Union City, Neb.," " Grimesville, 0.,"
and "Tin Can, Wash." But such comments as "Hey,
fellows, Cuernavaca's all right, and don't you forget
it," or "Say, why can't we annex Cuernavaca to Grand
Rapids?" however well-meaning, scarcely harmonize with
the antique. Some of the Mexican young men and maidens
who had visited the place had evidently been aroused to a
state of sentimental frenzy, and there were numerous Span-
ish verses pencilled on the stucco — lovesick outbursts
such as, "Ah! mi adorada!" (Oh, my adored one), etc.

I shared the garden's solitude with myriads of bright-
eyed lizards, browns and bronzes, greens and yellows,
forever darting over the mouldering walls or lurking in the
crevices and blinking out at the invader of their haunts.
But even here one was not safe from the Mexican beggar.
The wall at about three feet from the roadway was pierced
with a series of square holes at intervals, and as I sauntered
down the path I was startled by a voice crying to me from
some unknown place, "Un centavo, senor." A Mexican
urchin had spotted the stranger and was serenading me
with the cadging cry through each hole !

Cuernavaca has a number of visitors all the year round,
and during the tourist season, from February till April, large
parties come down from the City. In the main street I
noticed the "English Tea Rooms," the "American Curio
Store "and the" American Tourist's Supply Depot, "the out-
ward and visible signs of the tourist invasion. Motoring
trips from Mexico City to the town are very popular, and

228 MEXICO

every Saturday cars make the trip across the mountains,
bringing week-end parties.

The deep, rocky ravine called "the barranca/' which
runs through Cuernavaca, is a favorite ride for visitors,
who mount the patient burro or the restless Mexican
bronco. There are Indian huts amid groves of oranges
and bananas scattered through the ravine, and in its wind-
ing depths runs a clear mountain stream. A zigzag rocky
path leads into the barranca, where an old stone bridge
crosses the stream, and toiling up the other side one reaches
the little Indian village of San Antone. Here a fierce battle
was fought between the Spaniards under Corte*s and the
Tlahuica Indians, whose descendants are still living on the
spot, probably much in the same way as their forefathers
did at the Conquest.

I often crossed the barranca to San Antone in the cool
of the afternoon, passing the ancient pink-tinted little
church, with its mouldering walls and its neglected church-
yard, in which stands a moss-streaked stone cross with a
half-obliterated inscription. The village street is bordered
with rude adobe huts, embowered in tropical foliage,
orange trees, palms and sometimes the gorgeous bougain-
villea and poinsettia. Most of the natives of San Antone
are potters, producing the famous red Cuernavaca ware;
and they can be seen at work in their yards turning out
vessels of classic shape that might have been moulded in
ancient Greece or Rome. There, too, you may see the
potter at his wheel, "thumping his wet clay" in true Orien-
tal style. The squatting earthenware makers are pictu-
resque enough ; but here and there by the roadside may
be seen even a prettier picture, just a young, dark-eyed
Indian lassie sitting on her straw mat, beneath the shade
of a red sarape, making some bowl or jar of graceful design,
her sole utensils being a piece of broken glass and a horse-

A MEXICAN PARADISE 229

hair. With the latter in her teeth she will trim the lip of
a water- jug, smoothing the edges afterwards with the glass,
bending her small black head untiringly over her work.

On one side of the village street runs a mountain stream,
and here the Indian women, as the evening shades are fall-
ing, can be seen washing their household ware and cleans-
ing the linen ; while from the huts comes the sound of the
patting of tortillas for the family meal and the low, crooning
voices of women singing melancholy Indian songs. The
smoke from the wood fires fills the air with pungent fumes.
Indian girls with water jars poised gracefully on their heads
patter homeward from the village well. Peons swathed
in their red blankets trudge wearily back from work.
Then from the old church is heard the soft chiming of the
angelus, and a hush falls on the village as you wend your
way back towards the twinkling electric lights of Cuerna-
vaca, the steep barranca alone separating the ancient from
the modern.

A bright young mozo with whom I struck up an ac-
quaintance gave me some interesting information about the
Indians of San Antone and their peculiar customs. In his
broken English he told me that there were two ancient
women in the village who were alleged to be witches and
possessed of wonderful powers as fortune-tellers. "They
take old Indian figure dug from the ground," he said (mean-
ing one of the old Aztec idols), "and then they put burning
flax before it at night, look in fire and tell you all that
happens." "Did you ever have your fortune told ? " I asked.
"No, no, seiior," he replied, "I too much fear. Our padre
he say if you deal with those people you go to bad place."
One could easily imagine that an old wrinkled Indian crone
kneeling, on a dark night, and gazing into the smouldering
fire before some horrible Aztec idol, would make so weird
and terrifying a scene that my friend the mozo might

230 MEXICO

well be excused for hesitating to consult the powers of
darkness.

No description of Cuernavaca would be complete without
a mention of its exquisite sunsets and evening effects.
The height and the mountain air conspire to create some of
the most glorious sky pictures that it is possible to imagine ;
such bewildering masses of scarlets, blues and gold, giving
soft hues to the snow-capped peaks, and lighting the domes
of the old cathedral and the soft red roofs of the houses
nestling below. No one who loves nature could stand un-
moved before the spectacle of this sky splendor; and one
sympathizes with the stranger of whom the story is told
that he would stand hat in hand, in reverent attitude, on the
flat roof of a house at Cuernavaca, looking towards the set-
ting sun as if in worship. The distant hills, shaded in ex-
quisite opalescent tints, standing clear against the sky;
with groups of the white-trunked royal palms in the fore-
ground, crowned with their glories of dark green, make such
a picture as lives in the memory forever.

But one might go on indefinitely in praise of Cuernavaca,
its wonderful climate and its lovely views, which remind
one of what Mark Twain once said of a New Zealand town :
" People stopped here on their way from home to heaven,
thinking they had arrived." The sunshine and soft, dry
air do much to make the place a veritable subtropical para-
dise, while the delicious coolness of its streets is due to its
fountains and streams, which are fed from the surrounding
mountains. But above and beyond all its beauties is the
wealth of flowers, each little patio being an oasis of exquisite
bloom. One street of half a mile was actually bordered
by oleander trees loaded with blossoms of pink and white.

There are plenty of interesting sights to be seen in the
country about Cuernavaca, especially the Aztec remains,
which are very numerous. I made a trip of eighteen miles

A MEXICAN PARADISE 231

one day to the ruins of Xochicalco, which are believed to
represent what was once a fortified post or military colony
established by the Aztecs to maintain their authority
among the hill tribes of the western slope. The ruins,
which are situated on the top of a steep hill, are in -the form
of a large rectangular pyramid, constructed of well-shaped
granite blocks, ranging from four to six feet in width.
Sculptured in relief on the upper walls are colossal figures
of warriors in feathered head-dress, wearing elaborate ear-
rings, bracelets and breastplates. Most of them are broad-
nosed, with sloping foreheads — the peculiar Aztec type.
Surrounding these figures are feathered serpents, — the
emblem of Quetzalcoatl, — and rabbits, birds and wolves,
supposed to represent certain years and events. There are
also a variety of other hieroglyphics, the key to which has
never been discovered. The carvings are wonderful in
execution and exceedingly artistic. Some of the warriors
might almost have been copied from the sculptures of
Egyptian temples.

Remarkably well selected was the site of this ancient
stronghold, for it commands a view of the country for miles
round. Beneath it there are several passages faced with
cut stone, one of which ends in a square chamber 75 feet long
and 68 feet wide, which may have been a temple. The
central ruin and some smaller structures which are scattered
about are being slowly destroyed by time and the rank
vegetation, the roots of trees and huge creeping plants push-
ing their way between the stones and forcing them from
their places.

A day's journey to the westward from Cuernavaca takes
one to the caves of Cacahuamilpa, which are among the
wonders of the world and surpass even the famous Mammoth
Caves of Kentucky. In the village of Cacahuamilpa there
is a small hotel, clean and comfortable, the proprietor of

232 MEXICO

which provides guides for visitors. The caves have been
explored for over twenty miles, the winding passages lead-
ing to a series of natural halls, glittering with enormous
stalagmites, which are still in process of formation. Some
of these have taken grotesque shapes or formed huge pillars
of a hundred feet or more in height. One curious figure,
called the camel, from its resemblance to that animal, is
said by geologists to have taken from seventy to eighty
thousand years to attain its present dimensions. All this
wonderful subterranean work has been done by the action
of water which once flowed through the caves and is still
oozing through the rock. Two rushing rivers still flow
beneath the caves, and are probably hollowing out other
caverns for completion ages hence.

Among the most wonderful chambers is the Sala del
Trono or Throne Room, which is upwards of seven hundred
feet in length, two hundred and fifty feet wide and over
five hundred feet high. An American writer in attempt-
ing to give an idea of the size of this immense cavern, hu-
morously says, " If one of the great New York skyscrapers,
three hundred feet in height, were placed inside the Throne
Room, a man standing on the top of it would need a feather
duster with a handle two hundred feet long to sweep the
cobwebs off the cavern ceiling." On one side of this vast
chamber are two masses of stalagmites and stalactites, form-
ing two beautiful thrones, from which the cavern derives
its name. When lighted with magnesium light, the glitter-
ing effects of this hall of crystal are wondrously beautiful.
Another majestic chamber is called the Vestibule, the walls
being covered with stalactites and stalagmites resembling
the purest Parian marble, carved in various graceful forms
and beautifully polished. Not far off is El Campanario,
so called from a number of stalactites in it which give forth
a bell-like sound when struck.

A MEXICAN PARADISE 233

The passages are so winding and confusing that it is
dangerous to penetrate even a short distance inside the
caverns without an experienced guide. A melancholy
reminder of this fact is a gloomy cavern known as El Ped-
regal del Muerto, where the skeletons of two tourists who
endeavored to explore the caves without a guide were found
some years ago.

The "hot lands" bordering the Pacific Ocean are reached
by railway from Cuernavaca, the present terminus, Balsas,
being in the State of Guerrero. This important State, which
stretches along the coast for nearly three hundred miles, has
nearly half a million inhabitants and approximately covers
twenty-two thousand square miles. The climate is very
hot the whole year round. In this part of the country
there is some wonderful scenery, with mountain ranges
clothed with the dense verdure of the tropics, rushing rivers,
and precipices thousands of feet high. Until the railway
is complete, which has as its eventual goal Acapulco, mule
pack-trains carry goods and travellers over the mountain
between Balsas and the Pacific coast.

Guerrero abounds in prehistoric ruins which are believed
to have been in the same condition when Montezuma
reigned in Tenochtitlan, and then, as now, little was known
of the builders of these ancient structures. Professor
William Niven, an American archeologist, says that tens
of thousands of ruins of buildings which had been sub-
stantially built of stone are still in existence. During his
work of exploration in this part of Mexico, Mr. Niven has
unearthed some beautiful objects of gold, including idols,
amulets and dress ornaments of artistic design, proving
that the prehistoric goldsmiths were workmen of great
skill.

Some Mexicans believe that the mysterious region from
which Montezuma obtained his supplies of gold — which

234 MEXICO

was never revealed to the Spaniards — is situated some-
where in Guerrero. The country is certainly rich in minerals,
and numbers of English and Americans are engaged in
mining there. More than five hundred mining properties,
with a total area of fourteen thousand acres, are being
worked in the State. Copper, gold, lead and silver, with
other minerals of less value, are all successfully worked, and
from the miner's point of view the district is practically
virgin. So far, the difficulty of access has kept prospectors
away, but with the extension of the railway a wonderful
era of mining development is bound to follow.

CHAPTER XIV

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS

THE difference between the American and his neighbor
the Mexican is strikingly illustrated in the names and
history of their respective cities. In a past age many a
shrewd Yankee, with an eye to business, induced his friends
to start a town, and while growing rich by speculating in
real estate, perpetuated his memory by naming the place
after himself. Thus we have our Higgsvilles, Smithburgs
and other cities of prosaic name. The Mexican, with his
more romantic nature and devotion to the church, usually
named his town after some beautiful view near at hand,
or some wonderful miracle which was supposed to have
happened on the spot. It was a miracle that led to the
founding of Puebla, a city with a population of 125,000,
which claims to be next in importance to the capital.

The story is that a good friar, Julian Garcia, who lived
in the early Spanish days, had a wonderful dream in which
he saw a beautiful plain near two great snow-capped moun-
tains. There were also two springs which fed rivers of
abundant water. As he beheld this vision, two angels
appeared with rod and chain and measured off streets and
squares as if planning a city. Then appeared a flight of
angels singing a song of praise to the accompaniment of
heavenly music. The friar determined to find the place he
had seen in his dream, and after journeying many weary
miles he eventually reached the site of Puebla, which he
at once recognized as the spot he had seen in his vision.

235

236 MEXICO

As this was sufficient evidence of a miracle, the good old
man persuaded the Spanish settlers to build a town there,
and this grew to be the City of Puebla, or as it was originally
called, Puebla de los Angeles (The City of the Angels).

With such a miraculous beginning it is not surprising
that Puebla should have been much favored by the devout
in early times. So lavish were their endowments and so
wonderful the amount of building which followed that to-day
there is hardly a street in the city that does not have its
array of churches, their towers and domes rising in every
direction. It is for this reason that Puebla is often re-
ferred to as "the City of Churches." In former days pil-
grims journeyed thither from afar to worship at the many
shrines in the old city. It is still one of the "show places"
of Mexico and attracts many visitors; but most of these
pilgrims are tourists bent on sight-seeing.

It is a curious fact that pilgrimages to holy places are
usually difficult and unpleasant. The devout Mahomme-
dan who travels to Mecca does not find it exactly a pleasure
trip ; and it is said that the journey to Lhasa has enough
misery in it to last two ordinary lifetimes. It is probably
on this account that the passenger trains of the Interoceanic
Railway take about six hours to run, or rather jog, from
Mexico City to Puebla, a distance of one hundred and
twenty-nine miles. The passengers, I suppose, are regarded
as pilgrims, and as such have no rights that a railway
company is bound to respect.

This was the journey I took one bleak morning in Decem-
ber, starting at an unreasonably early hour. In the first-
class car in which I travelled the temperature was un-
deniably frigid, and a little steam heat or a foot-warmer
would have been extremely welcome. Some of my Mexican
fellow-passengers had come prepared for the cold, and took
frequent draughts from black bottles, with grateful ex-

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS 237

clamations of "Bueno." As I was unprovided with a
bottle, I sat and shivered. There is, however, a silver
lining to the dark clouds of even a pilgrim, for as the day
went on the sky became clear and intensely blue, while the
sun made itself felt to such a degree that the temperature
in our car became almost too sultry — the usual contrast.

The journey to Puebla is not without interest. On leav-
ing the city the train crossed the plain and wound in and
out among the sun-baked hills, giving occasional glimpses
of the snow-clad peaks of Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl.
From the hills there were long stretches of barren country;
now and again plantations of maguey ; frequent dry water-
courses ; and sometimes maize fields, where the dry stalks
remained from the last harvest. Half the trees along the
way were bare of leaves, and when there was any grass it
was sere and yellow. This, as I have already observed,
is the prevailing appearance of the Mexican highlands
during the winter months. The only green vegetation to
be seen is on an occasional irrigated field.

In the tropical part of Mexico, where there is moisture
and rain even during the winter, the vegetation is always
green. But for the lack of rainfall and the difficulties of
irrigation, the temperate zone of Mexico would be ideal for
the growing of all kinds of grain which flourish in Europe.
As it is, the great staple food of the Mexicans is Indian corn,
several million bushels of which are raised every year, while
little effort is made to grow other crops. Wheat, which
was introduced into Mexico by a Spanish monk, is grown
extensively in some districts; but as there is only enough
for local consumption, a large quantity of flour is imported
from the United States. This is used for making bread,
cake and all the fancy rolls which are served in the better-
class restaurants and hotels.

My pilgrimage to Puebla ended at two in the afternoon,

238 MEXICO

when I reached the picturesque city of white houses and
glittering church domes. Outside the station there was
the usual array of heavy, lumbering cabs and also some
diminutive tram-cars, drawn by two mules, which ran to
all parts of the city. Each car was provided with a big
gong which the driver clanged incessantly, as if to awaken
any drowsy peons who might be in the way.

I took a cab to drive to my hotel, but soon repented of
this rash act, for the street paving of unevenly laid cobble-
stones was simply execrable. In some places the roadways
formed miniature hills and valleys, so that my cab pitched
and shook like a storm-tossed vessel. In the middle of the
streets were deep gutters — so deep, indeed, that at some
of the street crossings they were bridged over. I heard
afterwards that the streets of Puebla — like those of Vera
Cruz, Orizaba and some other towns — were to be repaved
with asphalt in the course of a few months, and that electric
cars would take the place of the mule tramway.

The Arcade Hotel, where my coche eventually landed me,
is conducted in French style by an enterprising Mexican,
and it has the reputation of being one of the best in the
Republic. I found that its reputation is well deserved.
After luncheon, at the invitation of mine host, I went to
the roof, where I had a magnificent view of the city and the
towers and domes of its churches, some white, some red,
others blue, yellow and pink. Beyond the great plain sur-
rounding the town are rolling hills and mountains of reddish
tint, in the foreground the gaunt peak of Malinche; in
another direction tower the snow-tipped peaks of Popo-
catepetl and Ixtaccihuatl ; and still further off, in the blue
distance, rises the snow-dome of Orizaba.

A wonderfully quaint old city is Puebla, and much more
typical of Mexico than is the capital. Its flat-roofed build-
ings, usually of two or three stories, look a good deal like

IN OLD PUEBLA.

One of the quaint streets in this picturesque city.

THE PYRAMID OF CHOLULA.

In the foreground is a peon using the ancient wooden plough.
(See page 244.)

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS 239

the older buildings in Mexico City; but there is far less
rebuilding, renovating and Americanizing in progress.
Most of the houses are painted a cream white, but here and
there they are tinted in some soft shade of color which gives
a pleasing variety. Beautiful, too, are the fine old Spanish
mansions in which Puebla abounds, many of them having
their exteriors decorated with tiles of superb glazing and
ancient Moorish design. These, in some instances, form
mosaics representing figures of saints or birds and animals.
The city was once famous for these tiles, which were made
by the Indian potters, but the industry is now dead and the
art is lost. In almost every street one passes church after
church, in various architectural styles, some of them huge
edifices large enough for cathedrals. Each is of a different
tint ; some of the exteriors are beautifully carved ; the domes
and towers of some are adorned with tiles and many of
the domes are gilded. The tiled fagades of the old houses
and the varied hues and tiles of the churches combine to
give the streets a wealth of color that would delight the
soul of an artist.

Puebla, however, is not only famous for its churches and
picturesque streets ; but it is closely associated with those
inspiring words, "Cinco de Mayo" (the 5th of May), which
mean so much to patriotic Mexicans. For it was at Puebla,
on the 5th of May, 1862, that General Zaragoza, with a small
force of Mexican troops, defeated a large French army, a
brilliant victory which ultimately led to the triumph of the
Republic.

Still other claims to distinction has Puebla. It is the
capital of the State of Puebla, — the richest of the Mexican
States, — which is immensely wealthy in agricultural and
mineral products. The city is also an important manu-
facturing place, particularly for cotton goods, paper, and
that article so loathed by the Mexican peon — soap. Iron

240 MEXICO

founding, woodworking and a number of other industries
also occupy the busy Pueblans.

Puebla nobly maintains its reputation as the cleanest city
in Mexico. Its streets are remarkably well kept, streams
of clear water continually run through the deep gutters
and the sanitary regulations are carefully enforced. In
different quarters there are parks and plazas, with trees,
fountains, flowers and some good statuary, which add much
to the picturesqueness of the city. Perhaps the most in-
teresting of the public squares is the Plaza Mayor, where
stand the cathedral and several fine public buildings, in-
eluding the new Municipal Palace, designed by an English
architect. There are some attractive shops in the plaza,
and also in a fine glass-covered arcade leading out of it,
which resembles the Burlington Arcade in London, but is
on a larger scale. Some of the shop windows contain
great displays of paper-weights, inkstands, picture-frames,
and various novelties made of Puebla onyx in all shades
of color, the most delicate being the red and green. Near
the city there are some large quarries of onyx, quantities
of which are shipped to all parts of the world to be used
for interior decoration.

In Puebla, churches, of course, are among the principal
sights, the finest of all being the cathedral, which was com-
pleted in 1636 and rivals that of Mexico City in size and
grandeur. Onyx, rare woods and gold have been lavishly
used in the interior, giving it a wonderfully rich appearance.
Inside the choir, a superb specimen of architecture, there
hangs a chandelier of solid silver which is said to have cost
$75,000. The pulpit is carved from Puebla onyx, and the
high altar — the work of a native artist — is a wonderful
combination of onyx and almost every Mexican marble.
Some fine Flemish tapestries on the walls of the sacristy
were presented to the cathedral by Charles the Fifth of

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS 241

Spain. The churches of San Francisco (1532), La Com-
pania (1557) and San Cristobal, of about the same period,
are among the scores of churches which give Puebla its title.

The fact that I was in a city of churches was painfully
recalled to me the next morning when I was aroused from
my slumbers soon after daybreak by such a banging and
clanging of bells that I thought an earthquake was in
progress.

Being 7091 feet above sea-level, — somewhat lower than
the capital, — Puebla is a little more removed from the
"northers/' but when one is blowing, the temperature at
night is far from tropical. When I reached the city, the
day was as warm as a fine June day in New York; but
when the sun went down there was a sudden change to
November, and a good blazing fire would have been a wel-
come addition to the comforts of my hotel. To while away
the time, I went to a cinematograph show, but the cold
pursued me even there. In order to ward off chills and
pneumonia, I had to wear my overcoat in the hall, and even
then I was unable to sit through the performance without
going out now and then to get a hot drink. The Indians
in the audience wrapped their blankets tightly about them
and sat watching the pictures, grimly defying the cold.
It was Christmas week, and a large number of these swarthy
natives had come in from the country to do their marketing
and see the sights. I witnessed an amusing example of
their superstition.

An Indian family sat in front of me, and it was evident
that they were seeing a cinematograph show for the first
time. The worthy peon, his wife and children, seemed be-
wildered with amazement, and frequently crossed them-
selves. At last some French colored pictures were flashed
on the screen. The figure of a magician appeared, looking
very much like Mephistopheles, and in front of him was

242 MEXICO

a pumpkin. This he touched with his wand, and immedi-
ately it was transformed into six sprightly ballet girls.
After several transformations the wizard touched the fig-
ures, which disappeared in a cloud of smoke and flame.
This was too much for the Indians. The man rose, mut-
tering " Diablo, magio, no mas, no mas" (the Devil,
magic; no more, no more), crossed himself repeatedly and,
followed by his wife and family, all apparently very much
terrified, hurried from the hall. It is safe to say that these
Indians had a horrible story to tell their padre when they
went to confession the next Sunday.

As I strolled about the city that evening, I saw some
other interesting sights. Many of the streets were lined
with stalls for the sale of Christmas goods, dulces, toys,
mats and baskets of colored straw, the crude earthenware
of Puebla, colored clay figures and various knick-knacks.
There were also gayly colored pinates, some of them in the
form of oval jars, handsomely decorated with tinsel and
streams of tissue paper. Others were made up in large,
grotesque figures of clowns, ballet girls, monks and
animals.

These pinates (pronounced pin-yah-tay) are the Christ-
mas trees of Mexico, and take the place of those features
of the English Christmas in the affection of the little ones.
The jars or figures are stuffed with sweets, crackers, rattles,
whistles and other toys, and parents — usually on Christ-
mas Eve — hang them from the ceiling of a room or on a
tree in the patio. Armed with a stick and blindfolded,
the children are then led some little distance away. What
they have to do is to grope their way towards where they
think the pinate is and strike out at it. Each child is given
three chances. Sometimes they are blindfolded a dozen
times before any one of them manages to break the pinate
and bring the sweets and toys tumbling to the ground.

THE CITT OF THE ANGELS 243

Thereupon a great scramble for the dainties takes place.
The blindfolded child who has been lucky enough to hit
the pinate is sadly handicapped in the struggle, as all the
others have been eagerly crowding round to swoop down
upon the contents.

Piiiates are a source of immense pleasure not only to the
little folks but to their elders ; and the bigger children are
especially keen on this Christmas celebration, for during
the excitement which ensues when the jar is broken, pre-
cocious lads and lassies find it possible to squeeze into each
other's hands ill-written little love-letters or to whisper
tender words.

Christmas festivities in Mexico begin on the 16th and >
last until the 25th of December and are called posadas, a |
word meaning an inn or abiding place. Posadas are held I
in the towns and cities only ; they are participated in by '
the richest as well as the poorest classes, and are known in
Mexico only of all the countries of Spanish- America. They
are a memory of the Gospel story of the Nativity, when
Joseph and Mary journeyed to Bethlehem and finding no
resting-place in the inn were obliged to shelter in a stable.
At the celebration, everybody in the house, the family,
guests and servants — each one being provided with a
lighted candle — walk together several times round the
house, chanting a litany. As each prayer is finished they
sing the "Ora pro Nobis." The leader of the procession
carries figures of Joseph and Mary, formed of clay or wax,
and figures of saints are sometimes borne. A donkey, too,
often forms part of the procession to represent the faithful
creature in the Bible story. At each door in the house the
leader stops and knocks, craving admission, but no answer
is given.

When the litany is finished, some of the party go inside
a room, while the rest, with the sacred figures, stand out-

244 MEXICO

side singing a verse which is a plea for admittance. To
this the churlish answer is given that there is no room for
the visitors, and that they are regarded as vagrants or
thieves. Finally the door is opened, and the figures gain
shelter for the night, the closing scene of this ceremony
being the depositing of the figures on a roughly improvised
altar and a sort of mass being said in front of them.

The sacred side of the celebration over, the family and
their guests start feasting and merrymaking, and this is
prolonged to a late hour. In wealthy houses these posadas
are very elaborate, and at the subsequent feast beautiful
presents are given to each guest. At Christmas time all
the Mexican cities are ablaze with fireworks and colored
lights, which are the invariable conclusion for the posadas,
the piiiates and all the other festivities.

Puebla, like Mexico City, has no night life, and by nine
o'clock most of the streets are deserted. After dark the
city seems melancholy and depressing, and even during
the daytime it is far from cheerful, which is probably due
to the number of old churches with their sombre influence.
There are a good many Americans in Puebla, and they
do something towards brightening up the place. The city
has already been invaded by the American book, curio and
grocery stores; the American physician and dentist have
arrived; and there are numerous agencies for American
goods. There is also a comfortable American club, to which
most of the English-speaking residents belong.

During my stay at Puebla I went out one afternoon
by the mule-car to the town of Cholula, about eight miles
from the city. Cholula was an important city in Aztec
times and was the scene of a great battle between Cortes
and the treacherous natives. Having been invited to enter
the city, he discovered they were preparing to attack and
overwhelm his little force. Being in the midst of a powerful

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS 245

and warlike people, he was compelled to attack with his
six thousand five hundred men an army of twenty thou-
sand Indians. The result of the battle was the complete
rout of the latter, the Spanish cannon and cavalry slaugh-
tering thousands of the defeated Cholulans. After the
Conquest, the ancient city soon lost its importance and has
since been reduced to a small village.

The ride from Puebla to Cholula is full of interest.
Leaving the city, the car wound its way among the maguey
fields, passed through several haciendas where cattle were
grazing among the dry grass and crossed one or two streams
where a fair amount of water was running. On every side
was the great plain stretching to the mountains, above which
towered the great snowy peaks, against a sky background
of the deepest blue.

Cholula, like Puebla, was once a place of pilgrimage;
and on a high pyramid just outside the town there stood
the great temple dedicated to the mystic deity Quetzalcoatl.
It was on this spot that he was supposed to have dwelt.
Cholula was also a city of temples ; Cortes has recorded that
he counted four hundred towers in it, and no temple had
more than two. Pilgrims came from all parts of Mexico
in pre-Conquest days to worship in the great temple.
Whenever the people lacked water or a drought threatened,
children, usually from six to ten years of age, were sacrificed
with horrible rites. The city swarmed with beggars, and
Cortes, much impressed by this, wrote to the king of Spain
that "they were as numerous as in the most enlightened
capitals of Europe"! Of the great image of Quetzal-
coatl, which stood in the great temple, Prescott has given
the following interesting description in his " Conquest of
Mexico " : " He had ebon features, unlike the fair complex-
ion he bore upon earth, wearing a mitre on his head waving
with plumes of fire, with a resplendent collar of gold around

246 MEXICO

his neck, pendants of mosaic turquoise in his ears, a jew-
elled sceptre in one hand and a shield, curiously painted,
the emblem of his rule over the winds, in the other."

The pyramid now looks like a natural elevation, its sides
being overgrown with trees and bushes; its base covers
twenty acres, and it is about one hundred and seventy-seven
feet in height. Around it have been occasionally unearthed
obsidian knives and arrow-heads. Excavations at various
points have shown that it is built of adobe bricks, clay and
limestone. According to Indian legends, it was the work
of giants who wished to reach heaven, but the gods, angered
at their presumption, killed them before their work was
completed. In attempting to give an idea of the size of
this great teocalli, Humboldt has compared it to a mass
of bricks covering a square four times as large as the Place
Vendome and twice the height of the Louvre.

I climbed to the top of the pyramid by a long flight of
rough stone steps, and reached the little church of Nuestra
Sefiora de los Remedies, which marks the site of the Aztec
temple, razed to the ground by Cortes. In the vestibule
of the church were some modern paintings, presented by
persons whose lives were believed to have been spared
through the miraculous interposition of the Virgin, to whom
the church is dedicated. One painting represented a man
falling in front of a railway train which was being stopped by
the Virgin. Another man was under the wheels of a large
motor-car; but the Virgin's hand was on the chauffeur,
and the car was unable to proceed. The knife of an assassin
descending on the breast of an unfortunate peon was being
stayed by the same guardian influence. In another of these
pictures a murderous-looking ruffian is portrayed about
to empty the contents of his magazine rifle into the breast
of his victim; but the weapon is being pushed aside by
the same holy hand. There were over a score of these

W a

D §

* I

fa g

o §

THE CITY OF THE ANGELS 247

strange works of art, the execution for the most part being
of the crudest. I afterwards saw similar pictures in other
Mexican churches.

From the front of the church the view of the valley
and surrounding mountains, the many churches with their
glazed tile domes, and the numerous villages on the plain,
with Puebla in the distance, is superb. Old churches are
scattered all over the plain, and it is said that over fifty
of them can be counted ; most of them are isolated, without
any dwellings near them. These churches were erected
in the great building age of the Spaniards. Many of them
were abandoned after the enactment of the reform laws,
and some large, imposing structures, half in ruins, are occu-
pied by peons and their families. Why all these churches
were built, nobody seems able to explain. In Cholula
alone there are about thirty, though it has but five thousand
inhabitants.

The next day I took the train from Puebla to Santa Ana,
where a horse tram-car carried me, in forty-five minutes,
to Tlaxcala, capital of the State of that name, and the site
of a great city visited by Corte*s at the beginning of the
Conquest. The government of the Tlaxcalans was re-
publican in form ; they were a brave race, and had reached
a high state of culture. As they were at war with the
Aztecs, Cortes gained them as allies, and so was enabled to
conquer the latter and thereafter to subdue all the other
Indian races.

According to some Spanish historians, Tlaxcala at the
time of the Conquest had about three hundred thousand in-
habitants; but this is probably an exaggeration. Corte*s
expressed amazement at the civilization of the Tlaxcalan
capital, its shops, market-places, public baths, barbers
and police. To-day, Tlaxcala is a small town with a
population of barely four thousand.

248 MEXICO

In the town many relics of the past are still to be seen.
The Council Room of the Municipal Palace contains some
fine old paintings, including portraits of the Tlaxcalan
chiefs who allied themselves with Corte*s and who were
baptized in 1520. In a glass case is a flag said to have been
presented to the chiefs by the Conqueror. There are also
robes of silk worn by the chiefs at their baptism and the
embroidered vestments of the priests who performed the
ceremony. So remarkably fresh is the state of these relics
that it is difficult to believe they are almost four hundred
years old. The church of San Francisco in Tlaxcala is
the oldest in America, its foundations having been laid in
1521. It still possesses the font in which the chiefs were
baptized, and also has a pulpit from which the Christian
gospel was preached for the first time on the American con-
tinent.

CHAPTER XV

A MEXICAN CARLSBAD

WHEN a European is suffering from "liver" or kindred
ailments, he betakes himself, if he has the means, to Carls-
bad or some other popular and expensive health resort.
The Mexican also has his little maladies, and likewise a cure
to which he hies, and it is known as Tehuacan.

I first heard of the fame of Tehuacan from a man from
Minnesota with whom I struck up an acquaintance in Pue-
bla. He was in search of some place in which to recuperate,
and had come across an attractively illustrated pamphlet
distributed by the railway company, which described
Tehuacan as the Mexican Carlsbad. According to this
booklet, if all the virtues of European spas could be com-
bined in one, they would faintly approach the efficacy of
Tehuacan water. For Tehuacan also had its spa, in the
shape of two or three mineral springs, the waters of which
were said to be certain specifics for almost every human ill.
Under their influence diseases of the kidneys, calculus and
other ailments, more or less serious, disappeared as if by
magic.

My Minnesotan acquaintance also produced an article
he had cut from a Western newspaper, written by some
delighted visitor to Tehuacan. This writer had much to
say about the beauties of the place, the fashionable folk
who resorted there, and he waxed eloquent in praise of the
local hotel. "It is not a hotel," said he, enthusiastically,
" but a grand old country house, where the proprietor will
receive you with true Mexican hospitality ; it is not an inn

249

250 MEXICO

but a home." "That suits me to the limit," remarked
the Minnesotan; "I'm off to Tehuacan, and if the place only
comes up to that recommendation, it will be different from
any Mexican country hotel that I ever struck; for I'll
defy any man to get a square meal and ordinary comforts
in any of them."

I had, at that time, decided to continue my travels as
far as Oaxaca, the most important city in southern Mexico,
and to see something of the gold and silver mines in that
part of the country. Oaxaca (pronounced wah-hack-ah)
is two hundred and twenty-eight miles from Puebla, and
as it is a dusty, tiring trip in the winter months, my Amer-
ican acquaintance persuaded me to break the journey at
Tehuacan, which is about eighty miles on the way. I was
not sorry to do this, as I had great curiosity to see a Mexican
Carlsbad.

We left Puebla for Tehuacan the following afternoon,
making our journey of four hours in a crude, dusty car,
stifling hot and crowded with Mexicans. But the scenery
along the way amply compensated for any discomforts of
travel. From the city the railway crosses the plain, winds
among the hills and mountains and gradually descends to
Tehuacan through a succession of rich valleys, dropping
from an altitude of 7091 feet to 5408, this change of altitude
being marked by a corresponding increase in temperature.

Shortly before our journey ended, the train was boarded
at a wayside station by a Mexican serving man or mozo,
resplendent in a sort of German infantryman's uniform.
This gorgeous being represented the hotel at the springs.
He condescended to distribute among us humble passengers
illustrated pamphlets describing the establishment in the
following eloquent language . —

"The table service is unexcelled, even in the most ex-
pensive hotels in the capital of the Republic. The dining

A MEXICAN CARLSBAD 251

hall is probably the largest in the country, and is particu-
larly noticeable for the elegance of its furnishings and
the scrupulous neatness of all its appointments. Travellers
who have stayed at the most famous hostelries of foreign
capitals are loud in their praises of the tempting, wholesome,
daintily prepared meals served by the artistic chef and his
able staff of assistants."

The pamphlet went on to point out that you could not be
unhappy or bored at Tehuacan. There was tennis, golf,
hunting, and riding in plenty for visitors, the recreations
even including a bowling-alley and a church. My com-
panion, with a look of great joy exclaimed, "We seem to
be in luck. This place is evidently a sort of Mexican
paradise."

When we arrived at Tehuacan, we got on a little street-
car standing outside the station, drawn by two mules,
which took us and our baggage to the hotel, some two miles
distant. We travelled at a good pace through the dark
country roads, and at our journey's end found ourselves
outside a picturesque, long rambling stone building bearing
very little resemblance to a hotel. In fact, it was what
in Mexico is called an old hacienda building, a sort of
large country house and farmhouse combined, in which
the proprietors of haciendas or estates make their homes.
Passing through the main doorway, we entered a large, old-
fashioned, cloistered patio, filled with flowers, orange trees
and tall banana plants ; in the middle was a fountain play-
ing from a wide, moss-covered basin. Adjoining the hotel
was a long shady avenue of orange trees and palms. In
Puebla or Mexico City the open patio would have been
uncomfortably cool, but in Tehuacan, at a much lower
altitude, the night air was deliciously balmy ; the sky was
perfectly clear, the stars wonderfully brilliant; and there
was not the faintest suspicion of a "norther."

252 MEXICO

No one came forward to receive us or show us our rooms ;
but at last we met a drowsy-looking mozo who spoke no
English. When we asked him about rooms, he shook his
head in a bewildered manner — probably the effect of our
bad Spanish — and walked away. My companion said,
11 We must evidently help ourselves"; so we opened door
after door until, finding two that seemed to be unoccupied,
we took possession of them. We then wandered about in
quest of the proprietor or his representative, whom we had
expected to receive us with "true Mexican hospitality.'7

A jolly looking, bearded Spaniard was sitting outside
the house, puffing a big cigar, talking to the mozo we had
encountered, and apparently very much amused about
something, possibly our arrival. As the mozo strolled by,
my companion asked him who the Spaniard was. " Este el
patron, seiior" (He is the proprietor), replied the man.
Alas for Mexican hospitality !

The hotel was crude in the extreme. The bedrooms, it
is true, were comfortably furnished and scrupulously clean ;
but the dining-room was certainly not what you would
expect at a Carlsbad. It was a long room, paved with stone
flagging and furnished with an array of small deal tables ;
at the end of it there was a bar where guests could take a
drink between the courses. The waiters were unkempt
Mexican mozos with their coats off and clad in dirty vests.
The cutlery and linen were of the coarsest description,
and as for the food, only a robust constitution and a good
appetite engendered by the healthy climate of Tehuacan
could have made it endurable. No invalid could have
eaten it and lived.

The proprietor was, I discovered, one of the largest land-
owners in the neighborhood of Tehuacan, having an estate
of many thousands of acres. People told me that he con-
ducted the hotel simply to oblige the public and as a recrea-

A MEXICAN CARLSBAD 253

tion for himself. I suppose he had done this on the prin-
ciple that "what is death to you is fun to me."

My illusions about the dining-room had been shattered,
but worse was to follow. I ordered a horse the next day
that I might enjoy the wonderful riding the neighborhood
was said to afford. The horse produced looked as if it had
come over with Corte*s and taken part in the famous march
on Tenochtitlan. He was far too old to be interested in
me or my plans. He stood motionless while I mounted.
But then the worm turned. I was the last straw that broke
the faithful steed's back. He did not kick, he did not
plunge ; for he could not have done either if he had tried —
he simply foundered, sank to the earth and stretched his
weary, ancient limbs upon it. He was lifted to his feet and
two mozos pushed him back into his stable. My American
friend, as eager for shooting as I was for riding, started out
with a gun, but after tramping about the country for half
a day, came back with one small quail as a trophy of the
chase.

The morning after my arrival I was standing at the en-
trance to the hotel when I was startled by a voice which
said in a strong Western accent : " Good morning, neighbor ;
I suppose you ain't got such a thing as a kidney about you ? "
Turning, I found myself confronted by a wiry, wizened
Westerner, with a face like a dried apple. There was a
look of inquiry and a knowing twinkle in his eye. In
answer to his question, I hinted that my anatomy did
include a kidney or two, and that I was occasionally re-
minded of it when I had dined unwisely. "Wai, then,"
continued my Western friend, "you ain't got no business
with that kidney when there's Tehuacan water near by."

He then proceeded to relate how he had suffered mortal
agonies for I don't know how many years from acute kidney
disease. "I took that durned kidney on trips all over

254 MEXICO

creation, " he said, speaking of the offending organ as if it
had been some evil sprite with whom he had been doomed
to keep company. " I took him to San Antonio, Texas —
my native state — and dosed him with sulphur water,
but, Lord, it wasn't no good. He kept the upper hand.
Then I took him off to Topo Chico Springs near Monterey,
and poured down buckets of water, but he only laughed at
it. I tried a score of other places that the doctors sent me
to, but none of them wasn't any good, and he just thrived
on the water. Well, sir, finally I was advised to try
Tehuacan, and I came down here with very little faith in it.
Wai, I wasn't here twenty-four hours before that durned
cuss realized that his time had come. I had him where
the wool was short. He squirmed and kicked and didn't
exactly like the water, but I fixed him with it and, by Gum,
he's kept quiet ever since."

"But," said I, "when you leave Tehuacan, how do you
manage; doesn't he break loose again?" "No, siree,"
replied the gentleman from Texas; "Tehuacan water is
bottled and sent all over Mexico, and I drink nothing else."
Here he looked around with a mysterious air as if afraid
that he might be overheard. "There's only one gen-ew-ine
Tehuacan water," he said, "and the stuff they give you here
ain't fit to dose a dog with." "It comes from the spring,
doesn't it?" I asked. "Yes, it does come from a spring,"
he answered, " but not from the spring, the gen-ew-ine one,
and that's why I'm just a-going to walk two miles to the
right place to fill my little jug." Here he tapped affec-
tionately a wicker-covered demijohn which he carried. " If
you like," he added, "I'll pilot you to the place." I ac-
cepted the invitation, and along the dusty road, under the
blazing sun, off we trudged to the spring.

On our way my companion informed me that there were
three springs. The original spring, he said, had belonged

A MEXICAN CARLSBAD 255

to the hacienda, but the proprietor had sold it to a company
called La Cruz Roja or Red Cross Company, which bottled
the water, the trade-mark being a red cross. In the mean-
time he had dug a well which supplied Tehuacan water,
it is true, but this my companion insisted did not have the
curative properties of the original spring. Then a second
well was dug in the neighborhood by another company,
which also bottled water, and this, too, my Western friend
insisted was less efficacious. For that reason he walked
every day to the Red Cross Spring to fill his demijohn.

The country about Tehuacan abounds in high, rolling
hills of grayish limestone rock, covered with scrubby trees
and cactus of every description. On the way my guide
pointed out numerous holes in the hillside where attempts
had been made to find water. As we crossed some fields,
he called my attention to the remains of*some Aztec irri-
gation works, little aqueducts of crumbling stone, extending
for long distances, which had been supplanted by the much
cruder work of the Spaniards. A great deal of irrigation is
still done about Tehuacan, a plentiful supply of water be-
ing obtainable when wells are sunk. The gray soil in this
district is wonderfully fertile, and there were many green
fields of sugar-cane and maize.

When we reached the bottling works, we went to the
ancient spring to which the Aztecs once resorted as a cure
for their ailments. It has been enclosed with stonework
in the form of a well, and adjoining it are the bottling and
carbonating rooms. When we had quenched our thirst
with copious draughts of the water, which had only a slight
mineral flavor and is quite pleasant to the taste, my com-
panion filled his jug. The manager of the bottling works
showed us some grayish powder which remains when the
water is evaporated. A geologist who knows the district
well afterwards told me that all the water comes from an

256 MEXICO

•

underground stream, and there is no difference between one
well and another, despite my Texan friend's assertion to
the contrary.

As we returned to the hotel, my companion confided to
me that his business was selling kitchen appliances, stoves
and so on, to hotels. He knew all the dark secrets of the
hotel kitchens in Mexico, and gave me the benefit of his long
experience. He warned me against certain establishments
in the capital. " Don't go to Blank's," he said, " if you want
good vittles. That there place is inch deep in grease, and
they have the dirtiest mozos in the city." "How about
Dash's ?" I asked, referring to a well-known establishment.
"Clean outside, dirty in the back," he replied sententiously,
with a deprecating shake of his head. " They use canned
goods, too, and buy the cheapest stuff in the market."
After listening to some of his horrible recitals, I was more
than ever impressed with the truth of the familiar saying
that ignorance is sometimes bliss.

During my stay at Tehuacan I took a walk over the
hills near the hotel, which were thickly covered with cactus
of every shape and size. One was a straight specimen,
as tall as a lamp-post, covered with ugly prickles. There
were round cacti looking like colossal hedgehogs. Others
resembled the huge, straight-leaved aloe, but were armed
with formidable spikes. Then there was another with a
gnarled trunk, like that of a small oak tree, with great ex-
tending branches arranged like the pipes of an organ and
called the organ cactus. There was also a species which
had great flat leaves, and when these were shaken there
seemed to be quantities of liquid swishing about inside them.
Some of the cacti bore a sort of prickly pear fruit; some
had white and others flaming red blossoms. These cactus-
covered hills would have delighted the heart of a botanist.
Sickly, diminutive specimens of these plants are sometimes

W 2

A MEXICAN CARLSBAD 257

seen in northern hothouses bearing long Latin names and
labelled "Native of Mexico." Here they were growing on
their native heath in magnificent perfection.

The town of Tehuacan is more than ordinarily attractive,
with its pretty plazas and its wide streets which have rows
of trees in the centre of them. Outside some of the old-
fashioned Spanish mansions are curiously curled iron
brackets for holding the street-lamps. Tehuacan was an
Indian town long before the Conquest. The present town,
which has a population of ten thousand, was founded by
the Spaniards in 1524. Its business is still largely in the
hands of Spaniards, some of whom are direct descendants of
the families that came over from Spain four hundred years
ago. It is a quiet, sleepy place, and was rarely heard of until
the advent of the railway transformed it into a health
resort.

With a really good, up-to-date hotel, Tehuacan, with
its mineral springs, its fine climate and its beautiful scenery,
would become a resort well worth visiting, and one where
many classes of visitors could regain health and strength.
Under present conditions, however, there are too many
hardships to be endured to make it attractive to people
accustomed to comfortable living. Mexicans do not seem
to mind discomforts so much as Europeans and Americans
do ; and they patronize the place all the year round, some
of them coming from long distances. From Tehuacan there
was until recently a horse tramway line of thirty miles to
Esperanza on the Mexican Railway (the line from Vera
Cruz to Mexico City). This has just been converted into
a steam railway.

CHAPTER XVI

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA

IN the matter of scenic attractions there are few rail-
ways in the world which can equal that from Tehuacan to
Oaxaca. As a feat of engineering the line is also wonderful ;
for in the one hundred and fifty miles between the two
places it ascends and descends thousands of feet, passing
through deep valleys, threading narrow gorges, winding
upwards among the mountain heights, and taking the travel-
ler through the heart of the hot lands and the sub-tropics.
It is true that it takes fully eight hours to make this journey,
and the dust, in the dry season, is appalling; but there is
so much to interest one on the way that the dust is forgotten
and the hours slip by unnoticed.

On this fascinating trip I started early one morning when
the gray hills of Tehuacan were gleaming in the brilliant
sunshine beneath the wonderful blue Mexican sky. It was
a fair specimen of the delightful weather I had enjoyed
during my stay at the springs, and it made the " northers"
of my first Mexican experiences seem like some fantastic
dream.

My Texas friend — he of the kidney — came down to the
station to see me depart, and he had a parting word of
advice to give me. As the train was moving off, he re-
marked solemnly: "Keep yourself filled with Tehuacan
water, and you'll fool all the doctors and undertakers."
With this lugubrious farewell I started for Oaxaca.

The first, second, and third class cars of the train were

258

THE VALLEY OF O AX AC A 259

all well filled with passengers, the latter being literally
packed with peons, chatting, drinking, smoking and enjoy-
ing themselves as they always seem to do on their aimless
wanderings. In the car in which I travelled there were
three American passengers ; the others were all Mexicans. »
The railway men — the conductor, engineer and brake-
men — were also Mexican and spoke no English. This .
is not customary in Mexico, for many of the lines, particu- /
larly those built with American capital, employ English-
speaking conductors at least.

The weather was warm in Tehuacan, but in a few hours
it was still warmer, for the train made a steady descent into
the hot country. Passing through a wide valley, it skirted
a range of towering limestone hills which at times reach
the height of mountains ; it ran through immense fields of
sugar-cane of vivid green ; and at last clumps of date-palms
could be seen, a usual indication of a warm climate and
lower altitude. At Tecomovaca the line enters a great
amphitheatre of lofty mountains, far up on the sides of
which nestle clusters of adobe huts, marking the spots where
Indian villages have been built almost at the level of the
clouds. Rocks of varied tints that have been worn into
all sorts of strange shapes by the action of water attract
the eye, while the views on every side are wild and grand,
greatly resembling those in some of the most picturesque
parts of Colorado.

Through a deep canon, bordered by a rushing, roaring,
foam-covered river the train ran onward, skirting moun-
tains which towered thousands of feet skyward, with peaks
and crags of fantastic shape. Through canon after canon,
and through more rocky valleys, and the line at last reached
its lowest altitude of 1767 feet and the little wayside sta-
tion of Tomellin, a veritable oasis in the rocky desert, where
our train stopped for luncheon. This place is in the true

260 MEXICO

hot country, which well maintained its reputation, for
the heat was sweltering. The scene, however, was charm-
ing, the station being set in the midst of tropical trees
covered with strange fruits, and in the branches of which
chattered bright-plumaged birds. But more inviting
even than these to the dusty, weary travellers was the rail-
way restaurant where luncheon was served, its thick stone
walls and tiled floor furnishing a welcome retreat from
the roasting atmosphere outside. Bustling about, superin-
tending the waiters and exchanging greetings in Spanish
and English with his guests, was the manager of the es-
tablishment, "Dick, the Chinaman/7 quite a well-known
character. He furnishes hungry travellers with excellent
meals which are long and gratefully remembered.

After leaving Tomellin, the train began to ascend, wind-
ing round curve after curve, between mountains of im-
pressive height and grandeur until it reached the summit
at Las Sedas (6304 feet). Here a fine panorama unfolds,
the mountain ranges rising one above the other and fading
in the distance, the setting sun tingeing each with a differ-
ent hue. Later on, the country assumed a more cultivated
appearance, a few green, irrigated fields were occasionally
to be seen, while here and there were masses of magenta
bougainvillea and varied tints of crimson and pink flowers.
In this part of the country there are many haciendas, with
their great houses, granaries, churches and hosts of peons,
reminding one of the baronial domains of feudal times.

A Mexican who had been travelling in our train — a very
unimposing person — got off at a small station where there
was waiting a sort of old-fashioned, lumbering stage-coach
drawn by six mules, and about a dozen horsemen in the
Mexican national costume, — tight trousers, bolero coats .
and sombreros, — each with a rifle strapped to his back.
This Mexican, it transpired, was the owner of a large haci-

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA 261

enda in the neighborhood, and these were his retainers
who had come to escort him home. After an exchange of
salutations, the magnate entered the coach, the cavalcade
fell in at the rear and off they galloped amidst a cloud of
dust.

Towards evening the journey drew to a close, and I wit-
nessed another of those strange contrasts which are so
characteristic of Mexican travel. One moment we were
passing through what seemed to be a wild country without
a habitation in sight; then suddenly electric lights shone
out along the roads and a city appeared. It was half -past
six, and we had reached Oaxaca.

The journey had been very trying, for the heat had been
almost unbearable until the sun went down, and the dust
came through the windows in perfect clouds. These dis-
comforts are, of course, experienced to a much less extent
by those fortunate tourists who can charter a special train
composed of Pullman cars. Travelling in this way, they
can escape a good deal of the dust, have iced drinks to cool
their parched throats, and cover the distance far more
quickly than in the ordinary train. Many of the large
excursion parties that come down from the United States
during the winter months travel in this, the proper, way to
"do" Mexico. Rather a strong constitution is required to
enjoy such a trip as that from Puebla to Oaxaca in an
ordinary train. At the same time one must needs feel
grateful to the railway company, when comparing the
present with the past; for it is not so many years ago
that people who travelled to Oaxaca were obliged to make
the journey in jolting stage-coaches over terrible roads.
Nor is the rail way 'company responsible for the discomforts
of travel, which are mostly due to climatic conditions.

It is of interest to add that the Mexican Southern Rail- f
way, which connects Puebla with Oaxaca, is owned by an I

262 MEXICO

\ English company and was opened in 1893. The company
. received a bonus of ten million dollars from the Mexican
j government, and if it had not received this subsidy it is
I certain that the line could not have paid its way. There
are so few places of any importance between the two ter-
minal points that the receipts must be very small. But it
. has opened up a rich agricultural and mineral district in
the Valley of Oaxaca, and it will probably develop into a
profitable property in the future.

A mule-car takes passengers from the railway station
in the outskirts of Oaxaca to the centre of the city in ten
minutes. I got into one of the cars and made the trip
through the narrow streets . The houses along the way were
much 'lower than those at Puebla, being mostly of one
story; they were of the same flat-roofed style, but every-
thing seemed to be on a much more primitive scale. As
in Puebla also the streets had a wide central gutter and were
paved with cobble-stones. On the way the car passed a
little market-place where Indians squatted beside their
wares, their " pitches" lighted with flickering oil lamps.
It was Christmas week, and large numbers of these dark-
skinned, blanketed folk had come in from the country to
do their shopping. There were many of them in the streets
walking, sitting along the curb, hanging about the street
corners and passing in and out of the drinking places.

The car stopped at a large plaza in which stands the
cathedral and several public buildings ; and not far distant
was a hotel where I found quarters. It was the usual
Spanish mansion, partly rebuilt and changed into a hotel,
rather crudely furnished and conducted in a slightly wild-
western fashion. Several mining men — Western Amer-
icans — were staying here, some alone and some with their
families. Among these Americans was one of a type rather
too common in Mexico. He spent his time loafing about

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA 263

the place discussing "schemes" and mines with anybody
who would talk with him, posing as a mining expert. By

some of his friends he was called "Professor ." His

wife — such is the faith of womankind — seemed to regard
him as a great genius. Some time afterwards, while talking
with a mine-owner of the district, an American, I happened
to mention the professor as a mining authority. The
mining man shook his head dubiously. "I never heard of
the professor," he said. When I told him that I referred
to the man at the hotel, and mentioned his name, he ex-
claimed, "Well, well, calls himself a mining expert, does he ?
Why, he used to be my carpenter, and a d — d bad carpen-
ter too."

I took my evening meal in the hotel dining-room, a rather
unattractive apartment paved with tiles and furnished
with the usual small tables and hard wooden chairs. Two
Indian criadors (waitresses) who served the guests were
swarthy and black-eyed, had long plaits of hair hanging
down their backs and wore the popular speckled-blue dress
and rebosa. They were picturesque but unkempt. An
American mining man sat at my table and I chatted with
him. One of the waitresses sauntered up and some pleas-
antries in Spanish passed between them. The bold criador
playfully tapped him on the head with a plate, he made
a movement as if to snatch it, and she went off giggling.
"You have to jolly 'em along to get good vittles in this
place," he said to me, half apologetically, seeing that I was
shocked at such goings-on. A Chinaman, who acted as
both cook and waiter, took a hand at waiting occasionally,
cracking jokes with the criadors in Spanish with a Chinese
accent. It was all very amusing.

After my frugal meal I went out for a stroll about the
town; the evening was fine and balmy, much milder, in
fact, than our average May evening in the Eastern States.

264 MEXICO

There was a full moon and the stars were sparkling in the
clear tropical sky.

Oaxaca stands 5067 feet above sea-level, and at this

X height in Mexico one always get a mild, healthful temper-
ature.

The old triple-towered cathedral, founded in 1563, is an
ancient, imposing and picturesque pile. It stands on one
side of a large stone-paved plaza, on the other side of which
is a row of shops or stores, rather gloomy and cavernous,
such as are seen in old Spanish towns. On another side

**• is the Municipal Palace, and further on the Post-office and

.^ Courts of Justice, all fine buildings of white stone with the

usual patios. Adjoining the cathedral square is the Plaza

Mayor, centred by the usual band-stand and planted

s with fine old shady trees and bright-hued flowers, such as

s hibiscus and poinsettia, all in full bloom. There were also
several orange trees bearing their golden fruit.

The seats in the plaza were filled with Mexicans of all
shades, and there were also a good many Americans -
Western mining men, from their appearance. As I strolled
past them I occasionally heard such remarks as, " Richest

ore in the whole country." " Millions in sight," " The

biggest bonanza ever struck," and so on. There, too,
was my old friend the "man with the scheme," showing
his companions a chunk of ore supposed to represent
fabulous wealth.

On one side of the plaza, beneath the portales or arcades,
were several drinking saloons. Outside some of them were
small tables at which more Americans were seated, imbibing
the national rye whiskey, and discussing American politics
in loud tones. Blanketed Indians lounged against the stone
columns, regarding the Americans with lethargic curiosity ;
Indian women in their fcjlue rebosas squatted against the
walls, selling cakes and dulces. At another end of the plaza

TEE VALLEY OF OAXACA 265

some enterprising citizen had started an American boot-
polishing stand, with a row of chairs on a low platform,
with foot-rests before them. Several ragged young Indians
accosted passers-by with "Shine, boss, diez centavos,"
and wiled away the time by romping about the pavement,
indulging in all kinds of horseplay.

Facing the plaza stands the Government Palace, the
residence of the governor and the meeting place of the State
Legislature, Oaxaca being the capital of the State of the same
name. A sentry in a white linen uniform, with a rifle and 1
fixed bayonet over his shoulder, marched back and forth in j
front of the principal entrance. There is, in this respect,
a great difference between a Mexican and an American city.
In the smallest town in Mexico there is always the armed
sentinel on guard outside the official building — the emblem
of governmental authority. In an American country town,
as we all know, there is not even a policeman, and half a
dozen old citizens may perhaps be seen, sitting outside the
courthouse or city hall, whittling wood with their pocket-
knives and talking politics. Such easy-going ways would
not do in Mexico ; for there the sight of the armed sentry,
typical of force and the iron hand, is needed to impress
the natives with the dignity of the government. What is
suitable for the Anglo-Saxon is not suitable for the still semi-
civilized Indian and the treacherous, half-bred Latin.

With a population of forty thousand, Oaxaca is quite a £
large place. It has several pretty parks and public squares
in various quarters, and many of the stores and other busi-
ness houses would do credit to a much larger city. Among
the public buildings are a scientific institute, a seminary, — *
an historical museum and a public library. Branching off
from the plaza are some of the principal streets, full of shops /•
and other business places, several of the largest owned by '
Germans. There, too, one sees the usual signs of the Amer-

266 MEXICO

lean invasion— the "American Grocery Co.," the American
druggist, the doctors, the dentists and two American banks.
The town also has a weekly American newspaper, the
Oaxaca Herald. An American club has also been started
and to this most of the English-speaking residents belong.
The members are chiefly men interested in mining, the ma-
jority Americans, the others being Englishmen and Welsh-
men. This club has some very comfortable rooms in the
Casino Building near the main plaza, where I afterwards
met a number of pleasant fellows and heard many a weird
and wonderful story about the mineral wealth of southern
Mexico.

Oaxaca is a progressive place, and many improvements
are being made. In the course of another year, so I was
informed, the rough cobble-stone streets were to be repaved
with asphalt, and the mule-cars, which already run out into
the country for several miles, were to be replaced with elec-
tric traction.

Although it was hardly nine o'clock when I took my
evening stroll, nearly all the shops were closed; for all
Mexican cities believe strongly in early closing. A street-
car occasionally jingled by and gave a touch of life to the
quiet streets, but very few people were to be seen. In
the residential part of the town, where there were quaint,
low houses, with balconies and heavily barred windows, I
suddenly came upon a more animated scene. Hearing the
strains of music, I wandered up one of the streets, where I
found an excellent military band serenading the house of
some prominent citizen. The Indian musicians, in blue
uniforms, were playing the Pilgrims' March from Tann-
hauser in wonderfully good style. A large crowd of peons
in their red blankets and great sombreros had gathered in
the street and were squatting along the pavement and on
the door-steps. Indian women stood in groups, enjoying

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA 261

a bit of gossip. Senoritas leaned from the upper balconies
of the houses, while their faithful bears stood below, looking
upwards at their divinities and chattering away so con-
tinuously that they must have had terrible cricks in their
necks. The moonlight, the music and the tender passion
probably made them oblivious to such a material thing. Al-
together, in its strange contrasts of blanketed Indians and
Tannhauser, tattered Indian women and charming senoritas,
it was a wonderfully picturesque and typical Mexican scene.

The next day being Saturday and market-day, I first
of all paid a visit to the local market. Along the roads
leading into the city from the country came droves of bur-
ros, loaded with fruit and vegetables, butter and other
merchandise, driven by blanketed Indians. Queer old
carts with wheels cut out of solid sections of trees, went
lumbering by, drawn by a couple of oxen, to the accom-
paniment of loud cracks of the whip and constant "arres"
(ah-rays) shouted by the drivers, the r's being sounded with
the long-drawn trill. The Mexican custom of yoking the 0
cattle by the horns seems very cruel, as the heads of the
animals are dragged down almost to the ground.

Indians on foot and burro and horseback — men and
women — went by in a swarthy procession. Some of them
had come over a hundred miles to the market and had been
travelling for days. From the hot lands, still farther south, ^
the goods brought to market were chiefly fruits, — oranges, j
bananas, cocoanuts, limes, pomegranates, aguacates, guana-
banas and a variety of luscious, fruity nuts. There was also
farm produce, — chickens, turkeys and ducks, eggs and
cheefce and what not. Women balanced on their heads
huge baskets loaded with such wares, sometimes carrying
by the legs, in the usual Mexican fashion, a brace of live
chickens. On the backs of some were slung brown-skinned,
tangle-haired babies, staring out from the dirty wraps which

268 MEXICO

enfolded them, with blinking eyes, upon the world which
was so strange to them. The Indian families brought all
their household essentials with them, a tin pot for drinking
and cooking, a few tortillas, some firewood, and a little
coffee ; the whole stock of provisions and utensils probably
does not exceed in value one or two dollars ; but the peon's
travelling needs are few. His lodging costs nothing, for
he sleeps under the stars, and he will have to buy nothing
but a little fruit, a few beans and some spirits. His chil-
dren often, and his wife always, accompany the peon on his
travels, for she fears desertion if he once goes away alone.

The procession of Indians constantly reminded me of
scenes in the East, particularly those Biblical pictures of
desert travelling, the donkeys, the ox-carts, the women
balancing their loads on their shapely heads like the
daughters of the Nile, and in the background the white
walls, red tiled-roofs and domes of Oaxaca almost like a
bit of Bagdad or Cairo.

The objective of all these processions was, of course, the
market-place — a great walled enclosure on the outskirts
of the town. This was packed with a motley crowd of
Indian men and women, wandering about intent on making
hard bargains, and the air was filled with the constant
hum and buzz of their voices. No one seemed to be dis-
turbed by the dogs, pigs and donkeys in the market, whose
barks, grunts and brays added their quota to the general
din. Near the entrance were the stands of the butchers,
where small pieces of very dark-looking and rather high-
smelling meat were being hacked and torn to the size de-
sired by the purchasers. Dealers in fried meats were doing
a roaring business, slices of pork and beef being served
smoking hot to hungry peons by old dames who did their
cooking over small braziers filled with glowing charcoal.
The food was amazingly cheap : for five cents a peon could

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA 269

relieve the pangs of hunger; while for a dime he could enjoy
a veritable gorge.

Although it was Christmas time, Oaxaca was ablaze with
sunshine, the weather being more balmy and much more
delightful than the fairest day in an English midsummer.
The stalls of the fruit and vegetable sellers were loaded with
a tempting array of new potatoes, luscious tomatoes, large
radishes, peas, beans and cabbages. There were oranges,
bananas, pineapples, limes and plantains fresh from the
hot lands as well as aguacates (the vegetable salad), gran-
aditas, mangoes, granadas, cocoanuts and prickly pears.
The fruit and vegetables were attractively arranged in
little piles on large banana leaves, while such things as
dried beans, Indian corn, chilis and eggs were spread on
clean cloths. In gayly painted gourds there were sweets,
rich preserves and cakes, while here and there was a bare-
footed Indian girl selling cream cheese and lumps of unre-
fined brown sugar. There were also stalls where thirsty
souls could quaff the freshly extracted juice of the pine-
apple, lime or tamarind, or imbibe mugsful of the evil-
smelling pulque. The stall-keepers sat behind their little
piles of merchandise smoking cigarettes, these booths with
the jostling crowds which surrounded them making the
place almost impassable.

In one corner of the market were pigs and other live
stock, chickens, ducks, turkeys and brightly colored par-
rots. Next to these were stalls where sarapes, sombreros,
cotton suits, rebosas and other articles of clothing were on
sale. Baskets, mats and bright red pottery of fantastic
shapes were sold in another quarter. But the flower stalls,
with their fragrant and many-colored blossoms, formed
the most attractive sight of all. Here, in this December
week, were great masses of sweet-smelling carnations and
violets, with a wealth of crimson and white roses, helio-

270 MEXICO

trope, sweet-peas, pansies and wild orchids. An immense
bouquet of these — all that you could carry — costs but a
few cents.

Oaxaca, like most Mexican cities, contains a number of
fine old churches built in the days of Spanish domination,
seven of them dating from the sixteenth century. Of
these the most interesting is the Church of Santo Domingo,
which is not only the most imposing of them all, but is
one of the most important in Mexico. After it was built,
the great gold-mining millionaires of the district lavished
their wealth upon it. The life-size figures of saints, which
are in relief, were literally covered with gold, and so rich
and so heavy was the precious metal on the walls in former
days that it could be easily removed. During revolution-
ary periods, when soldiers were quartered in Oaxaca, the
men frequently clamored for their pay, and as there were
usually no funds, it was quite customary for the command-
ing officers to say, "Go to Santo Domingo, boys, and help
yourselves." Having recently been restored at enormous
cost, the church is one of the most richly decorated edifices
on the American continent. Its interior is a blaze of gold
decoration and presents a magnificent sight.

The restoration of Santo Domingo, the cathedral, and
most of the other churches in and about Oaxaca is due to
the energy of the archbishop, Dr. Gillow, one of the most
popular ecclesiastics in Mexico. Archbishop Gillow, who
is the son of an Englishman, was educated at Stonyhurst
College, and afterwards spent some years in Rome. He
has been at the head of the diocese of Oaxaca for over
twenty years.

Despite the renovating and modernizing which are in
progress, Oaxaca has still an old-world appearance. It
is situated in a broad valley surrounded by lofty hills and
rocky, barren mountains of reddish tint, which form a

THE VALLEY OF OAXACA 271

striking background to the white city. Viewed from a
distance, under a cloudless blue sky, the effect is wonder-
fully beautiful. On one side of the city, lying close to the
hills, the streets have a slight ascent, and streams of clear
water flow down their central gutters from the waterworks
which are out in that direction.

Over three hundred years ago a Spanish traveller de-
scribed Oaxaca as " a not very big yet a fair and beautiful
city." It was a place of some importance before the Span-
iards came. The native inhabitants called it Huaxyacca,
meaning "the place of the guages," because the guage tree,^
useful for its wood and fruit, abounds in the Oaxaca valley.
The Spaniards who colonized the place in 1521 abbrevi-
ated the name to Oaxaca. The Zapotecs inhabited Oaxaca
and the surrounding country when the Spaniards came,
and their descendants, the Zapotec Indians, still living
there, speak the Zapotec dialect as well as Spanish. Corte*s
owned vast properties in this part of Mexico, and Charles /
the Fifth of Spain bestowed on him the title of Marquis of I
the Valley of Oaxaca, for which reason he was generally
called "the Marquis." Oaxaca has a still more important
part in Mexican history ; for it was here in 1806 that Benito I
Juarez was born, and in 1830 the city had the further
honor of being the birthplace of the present great ruler of I
Mexico, General Porfirio Diaz.

Oaxaca played a very important part in the revolutionary
wars and in 1865 was taken by the French army under
General Bazaine. The garrison was then commanded by
General Diaz, who was captured, but afterwards escaped.
A year later, at the head of a victorious Mexican army,
he defeated the French, recaptured the city with all the
French cannon, ammunition and stores, then marched on
to Puebla and Mexico City. The remains of the old forts
are still to be seen on the heights overlooking the town.

CHAPTER XVII

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE

ALTHOUGH Mexico is the greatest silver-producing coun-
try in the world and is also rich in gold and other minerals,
the average tourist sees very little of the great mining in-
dustry. Nor is this surprising, for very few of the mines
can be reached by railway, and to get to them one must
oftentimes make long, tiring journeys on burro or horse-
back over rough mountain trails. In this respect the city
of Oaxaca is much more favorably situated, as a number
of mines can be reached from there by a short railway
journey or a day's horseback ride over fairly good roads.

In Ocotlan, Taviche, Ejutla, and other adjacent districts
there are numerous mines producing gold, silver, copper
and lead, the precious metals being invariably combined
with other minerals. Some of these mines were worked
in the early Spanish days and even in prehistoric times.
One of the best known of them is the Natividad in the Ixtlan
district, which is one of the oldest and richest in Mexico.
It produces both silver and gold, and from an original
capital of $25,000 has yielded many millions in dividends.
Most of these mines are controlled by foreigners, chiefly
Americans, some being operated by stock companies, others
by individual owners. This has brought a number of
American mining men into Oaxaca and also a few English,
Welsh and Canadian mining engineers.

During my stay in Oaxaca I was introduced to Mr.
W. H. Baird of Pittsburg, manager of the Zavaleta gold

272

TORTILLA MAKING.

Indian women grinding corn on the metate.

MEXICAN REBECCAS.
Indian maidens at the village spring.

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 273

mine, some twenty miles out. Upon learning that I wished
to see something of the mining industry, he invited me to
spend a few days at Zavaleta, which invitation I gladly
accepted.

It was arranged that we should start for the mine the
same afternoon, and forthwith a horse was found for me,
equipped with an American saddle, a great luxury for an
unhardened rider, as the heavy Mexican saddle is usually
very uncomfortable on first acquaintance. Just as we were
starting on our journey we were joined by another American
known as Don Carlos, — his name was Charles, — who had
been employed at the mine, but was now prospecting on
his own account and was going out to Zavaleta to spend
Christmas with his friends.

It was about one o'clock when we mounted our horses
and rode off through the cobble-paved streets; and as it
was market day, we had to pick our way among a procession
of burros, ox-carts and Indians, some still straggling in
from the country and others already leaving for their
homes. The road that we took led down to a wide, shallow
river with a long stretch of sandy bed on each side of it.
Although the stream was spanned by a bridge, we crossed
by a ford lower down, thus saving about half a mile. Most
of the Indians took the same short cut, some removing their
sandals and wading through the water, others splashing
through on their horses and burros. Most of them had two
or three ugly looking curs trotting at their heels ; for how-
ever poor an Indian may be, he is never too poor to keep a
hungry pack of mongrel dogs. After crossing the river, a
gallop along a very dusty road soon brought us to the open
country.

The road after a short distance became a mere trail, and
at times when we left it to take a short cut our horses had
to climb up steep, rocky paths among brush and cactus,

274 MEXICO

performing the feat with wonderful agility. For mountain-
climbing the Mexican horses are unexcelled.

All around us were the towering, barren mountains,
bordering a rocky plain, occasionally planted with maguey,
and here and there was a bright green patch of sugar-cane
or vegetables where irrigation was in progress. Occasion-
ally we passed the crumbling stonework which marks the
ancient irrigation conduits which were in use long before
the Spaniards came to Mexico. The pre-Conquest natives
of these valleys were an industrious race, and there is hardly
a hill or hollow where it was possible to collect a little soil
that has not been cultivated at some time. These plains,
most of which are now arid in the dry months, were then
kept fresh and luxuriant.

Among the bright green patches which here and there
we passed would be seen a square adobe hut with a few
shady trees, a perfectly Oriental picture. Sometimes there
would be a herd of goats watched by a solitary shepherd
with his crook, in the truly Biblical way. Once we passed
a bare-legged ploughman in his white linen suit and big
straw sombrero, ploughing with a yoke of oxen, using an
ancient one-bladed wooden plough such as is seen in East-
ern lands. Above was a cloudless sky, and the sun streamed
down with tropical intensity. We were glad to take a rest
at a wayside spring where the Indian Rebeccas from a
neighboring pueblo (village) were filling their cantaros or ^
tall red water-pitchers and going off with them balanced on
their heads.

An American clergyman whom I met in Puebla told
me that during a long residence in Mexico he had been
greatly impressed with the numerous illustrations of Bib-
lical customs that he found in the life of the people. Some
of these had been introduced by the Spaniards, who, at the
time of the Conquest, had retained many of the usages of

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 275

the Moors, who had only recently been driven from Spain.
Many of the customs, however, were in common use already
when the Spaniards came to Mexico, and have been supposed
by some authorities to point to the Oriental origin of the
Aztecs or their predecessors.

On our way we passed a hill with a picturesque ruin, an
old domed church, built by the Spaniards early in the six-
teenth century. Tradition says that it was built by Cortes,
and that he immured one of his numerous wives in the con-
vent adjoining it. Mexico is full of legends of the great
Conqueror and his wives; at one place you are shown
the house where he is said to have strangled one of them ;
at another, a well where he drowned one; and another,
where he is said to have poisoned one.

Zavaleta is about fifteen hundred feet higher than Oaxaca,
so that our ride was a gradual ascent. About halfway the
country changed, the barren, sun-baked mountains giving
place to towering heights of three and four thousand feet,
covered with trees, most of them beautifully green. The
air also grew much cooler. Onward we rode, up hill and
down dale, along rocky roads, some of them so steep that
our horses in descending almost slid down, their haunches
being so much higher than their forelegs. Sometimes we
forded a brawling stream which dashed along its rocky
bed, winding in and out among the mountains. At last,
about four o'clock, our journey came to an end and we
entered the valley of Zavaleta, as wild as any glen in the
remote Scottish Highlands.

A foaming stream, rushing down from the mountains,
wound through the middle of the valley, leaping through
a succession of beautiful cascades. Our road was about a
hundred feet above this, and on the opposite side of the
valley was a small group of huts of adobe, each standing
in a small cultivated patch. Outside these the Indian

276 MEXICO

women were squatting, busily patting their tortillas, pre-
paring the evening meal ; the Indian children were playing
about in their solemn way ; and the pungent smoke of the
village fires was slowly rising in the air.

We passed the crushing works or stamp-mill, where the
ore is ground, the mountain stream furnishing the power
for this and also for the electric-light plant. A short dis-
tance beyond we reached a veritable oasis in the desert,
a spot of marvellous beauty. Two picturesque stone
houses, which furnished quarters for the manager of the
mine and his assistants, were surrounded by beautiful irri-
gated gardens filled with trees and flowering plants in won-
derful variety. The houses themselves were covered with
magenta bougainvillea in full bloom; the gardens were
bright with red and white roses, pansies, violets, camellias,
scarlet hibiscus, red poinsettia and jasmine, filling the air
with exquisite perfume. Through the gardens ran streams
of clear water, irrigating them and keeping them perpetu-
ally green.

Baird told me that the houses were built and the gardens
laid out by an Englishman interested in archeology who
had formerly owned the mine. He had lived in the valley
for several years, and while looking after the mine had ex-
plored the prehistoric ruins in that part of the country.
He eventually sold the property to an American syndicate.
Baird added : " If we had started the mine, you wouldn't
have found a place like this. American mining men always
work first and play afterwards, living in any kind of an old
shanty until the mine has been developed and is paying.
Englishmen usually do just the reverse. There is a mine
in this district," he continued, "which belonged to an Eng-
lish company, and they sent out some young Englishmen
to run it. The first thing they did was to build comfortable
houses and make a good road to the town, so that they

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 277

could gallop in there occasionally on their fast horses.
Then they laid in a fine stock of provisions, all kinds of
canned things, lots of wine, and lived like fighting-cocks.
It wasn't surprising that the company couldn't pay divi-
dends. Finally they sacked the Englishmen and employed
some rough-and-ready, hard-working Americans, and are
now getting a fair profit on the investment."

In point of solid comfort Zavaleta was far ahead of any-
thing I had experienced in Puebla or even Mexico City.
Not only were the houses at the mine cosily furnished and
electric lighted, but they had — joyful sight ! — open fire-
places ; and when the sun sank behind the mountains, crac-
kling wood fires were started, and one could sit down and
positively enjoy life. Being nearly seven thousand feet
above sea-level, with cool streams running through it, the
valley has the usual characteristics of a mountain place.
During the winter months it usually loses sight of the sun
before five o'clock in the evening, and when the long shad-
ows fall the air soon grows chilly ; by night it is quite sharp.

The view from the porch of Baird's house was superb;
all around were towering mountains covered with dense
woods; and there were varied tints in the foliage which
strongly reminded me of autumn scenes in our White
Mountains. Each of the houses had an Indian woman
acting as housekeeper, and during my stay we had very
good meals, plain food but well cooked, and the keen
mountain air was a great stimulus to the appetite.

On the following day, which was Sunday, I inspected
the mine, which was about half a mile from the houses, and
consisted of several tunnels driven into the side of a neigh-
boring mountain. Along these tunnels tramway rails were
laid, small trucks taking the ore from the mine down the
line to the stamp-mill below, where it was put in the crusher.
The tunnels were lit with electric light, and as most of them

278 MEXICO

were quite dry, the miner's work was not unhealthy. About
twenty peons were employed.

While I was in the mine Baird called my attention to a
rude shrine near the entrance, consisting of a small hollow
in the rock which held a rough wooden cross. Before com-
mencing work, he said, it was the custom of the miners to
pause at the shrine and say an Ave Maria, which was sup-
posed to preserve them from accidents and bring them
good luck in striking rich ore. The same custom is fol-
lowed by Mexican bricklayers, who when erecting a build-
ing always set up their crosses in the scaffolding, firmly
believing that these will protect them against falls. In
factories, too, small shrines are usually set into the walls of
the various work-rooms.

Baird's mining foreman was a very intelligent German
called Gus, who came from a small town near Bingen on the
Rhine. Having been apprenticed to a florist in his youthful
days, he was something of a botanist, and when he was not
at work in the mine he was always pottering about the
gardens looking after the flowers. Another member of
the staff was an American named Green, hailing from Bos-
ton, who superintended the stamp-mill and made assays
of the ores, being a skilled metallurgist.

The gold in the Zavaleta rock is mixed with a certain
proportion of silver, iron and copper. During my stay I
saw the whole process of gold extraction. The ore, on
being taken down to the mill, passed under six heavy iron
stampers, which were continually stamping down like steam
hammers, hence the name — stamp-mill. These pulverized
the ore into powder, which was then passed over a long,
slanting metal table coated with quicksilver. Water was
kept flowing over this table at the same time, and the pow-
dered ore was thus converted into a sort of thin mud. All
the free gold in it — that is, gold unmixed with any other

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 279

mineral — amalgamated with the quicksilver. The rest
of the mud, containing gold combined with other minerals,
ran into a box called the "concentration box." There it
was dried, eventually made into bricquettes and sent to a
smelter where the gold was extracted. The mud contain-
ing no mineral runs off in a different direction and is called
" the tailings." For over half a mile along the stream below
the mill the bank was covered with tailings, and the stream
itself was milky white from the waste running into it.
Every day or so the quicksilver is scraped from the table
and taken to the laboratory and there, with the aid of a
furnace, a crucible and other apparatus, Green separated
the gold from the quicksilver, the gold remaining in the
shape of a small disc varying in size according to the rich-
ness of the ore taken from the mine.

Oaxaca is one of the richest mining States in Mexico, |
and quite near to the city Baird pointed out to me some j
rocks which he said contained a percentage of copper, *
The country between Sonora, on the borders of the United J
States, and Oaxaca is the richest in minerals of all Mexico.
It is as yet but half realized by foreign capitalists what vast
wealth still lies hidden there. Cecil Rhodes is said to have
once declared, "I am not blind to the union of opinion as
expressed by scientists and experts that Mexico will one 1
day furnish the gold, silver, copper and precious stones I
that will build the empires of to-morrow and make future
cities of the world veritable New Jerusalems."

Enterprise and capital, particularly the latter, are the
essentials necessary for the great mining developments in
the Republic, which a few years will probably witness.
Good properties are not to be obtained for nothing, and the
carpet-bag exploiter must ever meet with disappointments.
The Mexican government is thoroughly alive to the value
of the land, and good mining concessions are not in the gift

280 MEXICO

of the "man with a scheme " and a piece of ore in his pocket.
Many of the richest of the old Spanish workings will yield
sooner or later, in return for a generous outlay of capital,
fortunes for companies willing and able to take up con-
cessions seriously and install machinery which will make
possible what could not be effected by the antiquated
methods of the seventeenth century.

The Spaniards overlooked very little of the best yielding
properties ; but here and there are districts which are almost
virgin. For example, southwest of Oaxaca, and not far
from the wonderful ruins of Mitla, are to be found free mill-
ing gold ores on which work has only just begun. Close
at hand are the copper mines of San Baltazar, believed to
be the place from which the ancient inhabitants obtained
the copper used in the manufacture of the axes and other
tools employed in the hewing and shaping of the great stones
of which the Mitla palaces are built.

The Mexican mining laws, which are very liberal, give
foreigners the same rights as Mexicans. Boards are estab-
lished in every mining community to look after mining
interests. Any one who discovers mineral can take up a
claim by what is called "denouncing" it before the board.
The ordinary claim is called a pertencia and is a hundred
metres square, containing therefore ten thousand square
metres. A tax of ten dollars must be paid annually to
protect the claim from forfeiture. According to the govern-
ment reports, over twelve thousand claims have been re-
corded. The Mexican government claims only a twenty-
fifth part of the proceeds of a mine ; a fifth was exacted by
the Spanish viceroys in the good old days.

Possession of a claim gives no right to the surface ground
within its boundaries, and all parts occupied have to be
settled for separately. There is, however, never any diffi-
culty about this, as the surface ground can be expropriated

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 281

from the owner if any trouble is experienced, and as a rule
no compensation whatever is demanded. According to
law, the owner of land can demand compensation only for
the ground on the surface actually occupied by the miners
and their buildings. The ownership of the land does not
extend more than a certain number of feet under the soil,
so that only the surface land actually occupied has to be
paid for. After a miner has once settled for the entrance
to the mine, he can drive his tunnels for miles beneath the
ground without paying anything further. I may add that
there is little or no placer mining in Mexico; nuggets do
not lie about in the mountains or in the streams as in
Klondike and other gold-fields. Nearly all the gold is
mixed with other minerals and must be extracted by the
process already described or by what is called the " cyan-
ide process," which is much more complicated and expen-
sive. The ore in the Zavaleta mine was blasted out with
dynamite and also removed with drills and other miner's
tools, and then broken into convenient size with sledge-
hammers for the stamp-mill.

Hundreds of American adventurers in Mexico go out
prospecting for gold and silver, and if they discover a rich
deposit they can start a gold or silver mine, provided they
have enough money to pay the small government tax,
settle with the native under whose land the mineral is
situated and do a little preliminary work. In cases where
mineral is found on public lands, no charge is made by the
government for the surface land occupied, and only the tax
has to be paid. Sometimes a prospector will strike some-
thing rich and manage to sell out to capitalists and thus
make a fortune.

Green and Gus were both practical mining men, and had
worked in gold and silver mines in Colorado. They
been prospecting round Zavaleta, and having disco ve

282 MEXICO

that the vein of Baird's mine extended to a mountain still
farther on, they obtained a concession for mining there and
had driven a tunnel into the mountain side. Some good
ore had already been found, and they expected to find even-
tually a purchaser for the property and so become rich. I
rode out with them to see their mine the day after my
arrival. The way was rough and rocky, and our horses
had to climb up nearly a thousand feet to reach the place,
the trail winding round the side of a ravine, where a false
step would have sent horse and rider down an awful preci-
pice. While crossing the stream which runs through the
Zavaleta valley I noticed beautifully cool, placid pools
where trout might lie, but there was not even a minnow.
I was told that there are no trout in any of these mountain
streams. A few of the rivers in Oaxaca have fish in them,
but they are not prolific, which is probably due to the law-
less methods of the Indians, who use fine nets, poison the
water and even blow up the" fish with dynamite.

Up in the mountains above the valley the air was de-
lightfully cool even at midday. The mountain sides were
thickly wooded, the rocky soil was covered with fine green
grass, and beautiful ferns, from the delicate maiden-hair to
the large, broad-leaved species, were growing luxuriantly.
It was indeed almost impossible to realize that I was in
the wilds of southern Mexico. I might have been in the
woods of New England in early summer time or amid the
Scottish Highlands, except that there were very few pine
trees. Birds, too, seemed to be scarce in these woods, and
save for an occasional whistle or chirp, silence reigned.
There is, in fact, very little animal life in this part of the
country. There are a few small gray deer in the moun-
tains, but they are very rarely seen. I also noticed that
there were very few insects at this season, no mosquitoes
or other troublesome pests usually found in warm countries.

A VALLEY IN THE SIERRAS.

One of the charming scenes in Southern Mexico.

WITHIN THE RUINS OF MITLA.
The wonderful Hall of Mosaics. (See page 306.)

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 283

The State of Oaxaca is famous for its scenery and is
exceedingly mountainous. Its southern boundary reaches
almost to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in the extreme south /
of Mexico. It is- traversed through its entire length by a /
majestic chain of mountains (Las Sierras Madre del Sur),
rising at some points to eleven thousand feet above the level
of the sea. The State is surprisingly rich in its forests
and valuable woods, of which there are a wonderful vari-
ety, including mahogany, ebony, rosewood, maple, walnut,
acacia, cedar, pine, oak, holly, olive, poplar, apricot,
lignum vitse, veneering woods of all kinds and a number
of costly dye woods. Oaxaca abundantly produces Indian
corn, wheat, beans, cotton, barley, coffee, cacao, sugar-cane,
rice, vanilla, pepper, tobacco, hemp and india-rubber;
oranges, lemons, bananas, mangoes; in fact, every known
fruit and vegetable will yield abundant and profitable
harvests.

The climatic range of Oaxaca is of a most charming
character, varying from the cool, fresh, invigorating tem-
perature found in the mountainous districts to that of trop-
ical heat. In the uplands, from five to six thousand feet,
the climate is the most genial and temperate on earth,
from day to day and from season to season the weather
changing only sufficiently to provide a gentle variety with-
out violent transitions. A day's ride from the city of
Oaxaca will take you to an elevation of ten thousand feet,
where you can kick about among the pine cones and oak
apples, experiencing the coolness of a northern October,
or down to the hot lands to revel among the pineapples,
strange orchids and rank vegetation characteristic of a
tropical climate near the sea-coast.

The scenic beauties of the State are unrivalled. Majestic
mountains whose peaks seem to melt into the clear blue
sky form the background of scenery full of charming peace-

284 MEXICO

fulness, of beautiful valleys enriched with nature's bounty
of tropical verdure; whilst ravines, cascades and swift-
flowing rivers and streams give a touch of the wild and
romantic to every view.

The days of Zavaleta were like midsummer, but the nights
were cool and bracing. There was a beautifully clear sky,
and the stars shone with that dazzling brightness peculiar
to the tropics.

If Zavaleta had been in any country less remote it would,
by this time, have been transformed into a popular winter
resort. A fine large hotel would have been established
there, equipped with all modern luxuries ; several miles of
the surrounding lands would have been laid out as a great
park ; the streams would have been preserved and stocked
with trout. These attractions, combined with its superb
climate and magnificent scenery, would make it an earthly
paradise in the winter-time.

The country about Zavaleta is very scantily settled,
with only an occasional Indian village of adobe huts.
Only a fraction of it is cultivated, although its agricultural
possibilities are unlimited. What a country it would be if,
instead of the dirty, lazy Indians, it was inhabited by, say,
the sturdy, industrious peasants of northern Italy ! Its
barren hills and valleys would then be covered with vine-
yards and fruit trees of every description. Peopled by
an industrious, progressive race there would be no end to
its possibilities.

It is pitiful to think of such a wonderful land remaining
in the hands of the shiftless Indians. In a country where
nearly every description of fruit, cereal and vegetable can
be raised, they are content to live on tortillas and beans ;
their little farms are rudely cultivated ; they reap one large
crop of Indian corn and then let the ground lie idle for the
rest of the year, whereas they might gather two or three

LUXURIOUS LIFE AT A GOLD-MINE 285

crops. Fruit trees might be easily planted or even raised
from seed ; but that is too much trouble. Nor have they
any idea of beautifying their huts. I do not remember
seeing one that had any flowers planted about it unless
they were wild creepers planted by the hand of nature.
The idle peon dawdles at home, smoking his cigarettes and
living from hand to mouth. Give him enough tortillas and
beans, a little sugar, coffee and tobacco, his wants are satis-
fied, and he cares not a jot about the world and its progress.
Even if his contentment and his preference for the simple \
life are suggestive of a latter-day Arcady, he is undoubtedly ;
an obstacle to progress and to the best interests of his lovely
land.

As I rode through this fair country I thought how topsy-
turvy the world often seems to be. Thousands of wretched,
half-starved people herding in the great cities of Europe,
their minds and bodies dwarfed by their surroundings,
knowing nothing of the beauties of nature ; and here a great
district capable of supporting a hundred times as many
is literally going to waste.

I had a good opportunity of studying the indolent habits
of the peon's life, for just across the valley the little group
of huts was inhabited by typical Indian families. Most of
the men worked in the mine when they were not celebrat-
ing feast-days ; the women, when not engaged in making
tortillas, spent most of their time in washing the household \
clothing in the stream. I often wondered why it is that with I
all this washing the peon generally appears to be so dirty, j
By some queer law of gravitation dirt seems to actually
fly to him. Here, too, was another of those remarkable
Mexican contrasts. On one side of the valley were the Ind-
ians living their simple, primeval life ; on our side were the
comfortable electric-lighted houses with all the conditions
of civilization.

286 MEXICO

Looking across the valley one afternoon, I witnessed a
touching little scene. It was a day or two before Christmas,
and the children were gathered outside the Indian huts to
celebrate the festive season. Suspended from the branches
of a tree was a pinate, gorgeous with its colored tissue paper,
tinsel and ribbons. The mothers stood in a group affec-
tionately watching the children as they strove to knock
it down, one after another being blindfolded, until one
grave little maiden managed to strike and break it, when
there was a general scramble for its sugary contents.
They had probably been looking forward to this little fes-
tivity for weeks, and it was all conducted in such a quiet,
subdued way, as if generations of oppression and squalor
had crushed all the joy from their hearts. With their
poverty and pitiful surroundings there was to me something
extremely pathetic in this little scene. I forgot their dirt,
their indolence and all their other bad traits, for this one
touch of a common nature had made us akin.

CHAPTER XVIII

CHRISTMAS AT LOS REYES

To spend Christmas in the wilds of the Mexican Sierras
would seem attractive to any one in search of novel expe-
riences. And it was thus that the idea impressed me when
I accepted an invitation to accompany my friends at Zava-
leta on a holiday-making trip of twenty miles across the
mountains. Our destination was the little village of San
Miguel Peras in the beautiful Penoles district, near which
place is situated the famous Los Reyes gold-mine, owned
by an American company. Its superintendent, a hos-
pitable Canadian, had invited us to spend Christmas
there.

Early in the afternoon of the previous day we started
on our expedition, my companions being Green, Gus and
Don Carlos. "What would your friends in New York
think of this for Christmas weather?" asked Green, as we
mounted our horses and rode off. I wondered ; for, unlike
the weather of the average northern Christmas, the sun was
blazing down from an unclouded sky with an intensity
more in keeping with a tropical midsummer.

We took a rough trail winding up the mountain side,
climbing higher and higher, our path at times bordering
deep gorges of a thousand feet or more. As we gained the
summit of the range, a magnificent view unrolled before us,
with miles upon miles of wooded mountains and valleys,
and the great plain of Oaxaca backed in the far distance by
the towering peaks of the Sierras. The trail at last joined

287

288 MEXICO

a rough, rocky road, with occasional level stretches where
we could indulge in the luxury of a gallop.

On our way we passed through two or three Indian
pueblos or villages, always of the same type, a collection
of adobe huts, most of them surrounded with a cactus
hedge, and one more pretentious than the others serving
as a sort of general store. From these pueblos and from
some of the scattered huts a pack of yelping curs sallied
forth, snapping at our horses' heels. One of my compan-
ions was for shooting some of them with his revolver ; but
the others dissuaded him, as the peons, they said, would
follow us for miles, demanding compensation. Some
Americans in Mexico arm themselves with small air-guns
loaded with ammonia with which to keep off these dogs,
which are certainly one of the curses of the country.

Occasionally we passed rude wooden crosses set up in
piles of stones, mute reminders of an age that has almost
passed away. Each marks the spot where a murder has
been committed, and it is the duty of a good Catholic to
mutter a prayer for the soul of the victim as he passes, and
perchance to add a stone to the pile. In some parts of
Mexico there are so many of these crosses that a stranger
would suppose that they marked the graves in a wayside
cemetery. The Mexican bandit in former times not only
robbed, but more often than not killed his victims; and
even to this day men do not travel in the remoter districts
without a revolver and plenty of ammunition. The mining
men who went into the Sierras from Oaxaca, I noticed,
always had their revolvers strapped to their belts.

By a continuous ascent we eventually reached an altitude
of nearly ten thousand feet and entered one of the most
charming bits of country that I had seen in Mexico. It
was, in fact, very hard for me to realize that I was actually
in Mexico and not in the midst of some peaceful English

CHEI8TMAS AT LOS REYES 289

park in the early summer-time. We trotted through green
woodland paths shaded by fine old oaks and other trees
common in temperate climes; through deep glades where
the earth was carpeted with green, luscious grass, the air
cooled by limpid streams which dashed over mossy rocks.
All the features of an English June were here save that
the woods were silent; there were no signs of animal life
and scarcely the chirp of a bird to be heard.

Farther on we came to a long stretch of well-laid road,
probably made in the old Spanish days. On one side of
this road was a deep, wooded glen ; the other was bordered
by a high bank which had been faced with rocks, now cov-
ered with thick moss and fern. We were now making a
descent, and over the tree-tops below us we caught occa-
sional glimpses of a broad valley and wild stretches of forest.
Down the road we galloped, and after crossing the valley,
a few more miles brought us to San Miguel Peras, the end
of our journey.

Entering the village, we passed the casa municipal or
town hall, a neat little building of white stone, the parish
church and then the usual collection of peon huts. Strung
along the village street were telephone wires, which we had
also noticed during our journey, connecting the district
with Oaxaca and other places. The government at Mexico
City is thus kept in direct touch with the remotest parts
of the Sierras.

At the fonda or village store, Don Ignacio, the book-
keeper of the mine, was waiting to greet us. He spoke
with such a strong Scotch accent that at first I thought
he was a real Scot, and wondered how he had contrived to
translate Duncan or Sandy into Ignacio. He informed
me, however, that he was of Portuguese parentage and
having been born in Scotland had acquired his accent there.
The Don spoke Spanish fluently, and was of great service

290 MEXICO

in acting as mediator between the mining people and the
natives.

A few minutes7 ride beyond the village brought us to the
headquarters of the mine. Here we met the superintend-
ent, Mr. Alexander Smith, and his Canadian assistant,
who gave us a cordial welcome. We had rooms assigned
to us over the company's store, a long stone building where
all sorts of things were sold, provisions, clothing, tools, etc.,
many of the miners taking their pay in goods instead of
money. A second story of wood had been added to this
building, also a large wooden veranda its entire length.
In this part of the building were rooms for the superin-
tendent and his staff, including the sitting-room where we
gathered and had our Scotch and soda. There were eight
of us altogether, a Mexican friend of Smith's having ar-
rived.

The mining property formed quite a little village itself.
In addition to the building already mentioned, there was
a large, old-fashioned stone house, used as kitchen and
dining-room, and adjoining this were various huts occupied
by the menservants, no women being employed, and seme
of the mining hands. Beyond these were the stamp-rr ill
and other structures connected with the mine works.
The mine itself was about a rnile away, the ore being brought
down on the backs of burros.

San Miguel Peras is about seven thousand feet up, so
,,that the night air was much colder than at Zavaleta. At
night some of us had five blankets, and even then found it
hard to keep warm, the thin, rarefied air being so pene-
trating. I nearly froze before the morning.

An attempt was made the next day to celebrate Christ-
mas in good, old-fashioned English style. A yule log drawn
by two burros was dragged into the big stone-paved dining-
room, where it soon blazed in the open fireplace. The

CHRISTMAS AT LOS REYES 291

weather was fine and warm, although it had been so un-
pleasantly cold at night.

After breakfast a turkey that had been fattening for
weeks was taken to a level piece of ground near the mine
and put in a box with its head protruding. Each man then
took a shot at it with a rifle, until one of our number man-
aged to hit it. The bird was then carried off by Tom, the
Chinese cook, to serve as the pi£ce de resistance of our
Christmas dinner.

Later on, we went to an enclosed field where sports were
to take place during the day. The fence-posts were gayly
decorated with Mexican, English and American flags.
In a tent near by was placed a Victor talking-machine, and
there it ground out Spanish and American songs and music
all day long for the edification of a large crowd of peons and
peonesses. When the talking-machine was first started,
Smith remarked to his assistant, who was managing it:
"Give them La Paloma and plenty of other Spanish music ;
that's the sort of thing they appreciate." But he soon
realized that the musical taste of the modern Mexican
Indian has suffered from the American invasion; for a
peon came up, sombrero in hand, and addressing him, said :
"Senor, la gente prefiere ' rag-time ' Americano; no mas
musica Espanola" (Sir, the people all want American " rag-
time" (he pronounced it "rahg teem"); no more Spanish
music).

In the field some of the young men of the village were
solemnly playing pelota (the national ball game of Mexico),
empty gourds having been fashioned into catchers for the
ball and tied to their arms. Quite a crowd of natives had
gathered in the field, and the padre, a good-looking Mexican
priest, came down to give ecclesiastical approval to the
festivities. The Presidente, or Lord Mayor of San Miguel
Peras, was absent, however, having had, it appeared, some

292 MEXICO

dispute with the mining people, and to show his displeasure
had kept away. I told Don Ignacio that I was very much
disappointed, as I wished very much to see what a Mexican
lord mayor looked like. " Ye havena missed ower much, I'm
thinking/7 replied the Don. " Ye see yon disreputable-look-
ing Indian squatting by the fence. Well, he was the pres-
ent Presidente's predecessor, so ye can get a vera guid idea
of what a village Presidente is like." The old gentleman in
question wore the usual white cotton suit, red blanket
and straw sombrero, and I rather think that he was bare-
footed. Don Ignacio further told me that the alcalde or
magistrate of the village had been chosen because he was
the only man in the place who could read and write ! He
was therefore regarded as a gente de razon or reasoning
man, literally "one who has a mind." It is in this humble
way that the peon refers to any man who has an infusion
of white blood or is possessed of superior knowledge.

The natives squatted about the field and swarmed around
the talking-machine, the boys and girls seeming to be much
more interested in this than in the games. Later on,
some Indian women came down with baskets of fruit and
dulces to sell, so that the place took on quite a public-holi-
day appearance. During the morning we had football and
cricket, the competing teams being composed of swarthy,
barefooted Indians.

Later in the day there were a number of sports, such as
blindfold and obstacle races, a burro race and finally the
great concluding spectacle — a chase for a greased pig.
When the pig was turned loose, a host of men and boys
gave chase, the squeaking animal scurrying amongst the
spectators, knocking down some of them; then it turned
and fled back to the field again, where three peons who
headed the pursuit fell in a heap on top of it, catching it
in their blankets. This, of course, was not according to

CHRISTMAS AT LOS BETES 293

the rules of the sport as played in England. Each peon
insisted that he alone had caught the pig, and each was
determined to have it. Two of them drew ugly looking
knives and swore by all the saints that they would defend
their rights. Bloodshed seemed impending, when Smith
plunged into the melee, and vowed that none of them should
have the pig, as they had not played fair. To prevent
hostilities he compromised matters by offering each man
two dollars. The pig, the innocent cause of the whole
disturbance, was then taken back to its pen. After some
argument, the peons came to terms and peace was restored.

We sat round the long table in the stone-paved dining-
room that evening and ate our Christmas dinner, warmed
by the welcome blaze of the yule log. There was roast
turkey, Christmas pudding, mince pie and numerous other
good things, and some excellent wine. Afterwards we
adjourned to the veranda where a large company of peons
and their wives and young men and maidens had assembled
for a dance.

The festivities were opened with a dance called the
Danza de Sombrero. A sombrero being placed on the floor,
a girl and boy danced round it, in and out, drawing near
and gliding away without touching it. Then there was the
bottle dance, a young Indian deftly balancing a wine-bottle
on his head as he danced with his dark-skinned partner.
The music was furnished by three natives playing queer old
mandolins. Then followed dancing by the entire company
to the music of the talking-machine, alternating with that
of the mandolins. This dancing was interminable and
monotonous, both men and women moving round with
expressionless faces, their whole demeanor melancholy and
funereal. But they seemed to enjoy it in their solemn
way and kept up their gloomy revels until long after mid-
night.

294 MEXICO

The air was rather chilly outside, so after watching the
dancing for a time we adjourned to the sitting-room to play
cards. Later on I went on the veranda to have another
look at the peon festivity, and to avoid catching cold
swathed myself in a red blanket and put on a sombrero.
An Indian seated near me apparently thought that I was
one of his own race and spoke to me in his native tongue ;
but one of his companions, glancing at me, interrupted him.
"No es Indio," he remarked; "es un seiior; un gente de
razon." (He is no Indian; he's a gentleman; one who can
reason.) I felt very much complimented. My swarthy
friend spoke in Spanish, I presume, that I might see that
he, too, had some pretensions to being a gente de razon.

During my stay at the Los Reyes mine I examined some
of the workings, which are very extensive. In some parts
of them there are traces of excavations made by the abo-
riginal miners in prehistoric times, and also those of Spanish
gold-seekers. Spaniards mined in the Penoles district
for over a hundred years, and were followed by the Mexi-
cans and lastly by the Americans. The earlier mining
operations, however, were conducted in a very superficial
manner, and it is only within recent years that modern
methods have been introduced. Large quantities of pay-
ing ore are now taken from the Los Reyes mine ; some of
it is wonderfully rich, and I was shown several specimens in
which almost virgin gold was embedded in the glittering
quartz.

Our festivities at Los Reyes ended with Christmas night.
At eight o'clock the next morning we mounted our horses,
bade farewell to our hosts and rode back over the moun-
tains to Zavaleta. After resting there for a day or two,
I returned to Oaxaca.

During my absence large numbers of American mining
men and others had come into the town from the country

CHKISTMAS AT LOS EETES 295

districts to spend Christmas. My hotel was quite well
filled. Among the newcomers were various "men with
schemes/' with some of whom I formed a speaking acquaint-
ance. They had much to tell me of the enormous deposits
of gold and silver which were tucked away in remote corners
of the Sierras, the whereabouts of which had been revealed
to them alone. This mineral wealth simply needed removal,
but mining unfortunately requires some money, and my
friends with the schemes were short of cash. With true
generosity, however, they were ready and willing to share
their prospective millions with any lucky mortal who would
back them to the extent of a few thousand American dollars.

Cynical, sneering people have sometimes been heard to
suggest that the man with the scheme is not a philan-
thropist, but a shrewd individual, keenly alive to the in-
terests of number one, who has some worthless piece of
property and is ready to unload it on some guileless victim.
This may be true, but there are cases when the man with
the scheme is a well-meaning person who is sometimes vic-
timized by a still shrewder schemer. Of this I had actual
demonstration during my stay in Oaxaca. At the Ameri-
can Club I was one day buttonholed by a Greek who, having
been born in Wales, called himself a Welshman. He told
me that he had struck some wonderfully rich silver ore
about twenty-five miles out in the Sierras and that the assay
showed I know not how many thousands of dollars per ton.
On the strength of a wonderful report drawn up by a firm
of assayers who were interested in the property, he had paid
down quite a sum to secure an option on it.

One evening my friend, the silver king, insisted upon my
going to his quarters to look at the ore and the diagram
of the mine. A Welsh mining engineer with whom I had
become acquainted at the club was with me, and he was
also invited. We went and looked at the ore, which seemed

296 MEXICO

to contain some kind of mineral, and also examined the
blue-prints of the mine workings. The engineer, who was
a practical mining man, studied the report closely and made
some notes. My Greek Welshman, who I could see was
an unpractical, visionary sort of person, was wild with
excitement, talking incessantly of the millions that he ex-
pected to make. The next day I met my friend the en-
gineer and he said : " I have been making an estimate from
's own report, and I find that the poor fellow will ac-
tually lose ten dollars on every ton of ore that he takes
from the mine, the percentage of mineral being insufficient
to even cover the cost of working it. His assayer's report
is absolute rubbish." He added that many of the assayers
in Mexico were grossly incompetent, and for this and occa-
sionally for other reasons every mine that they reported
on was, according to their estimates, certain to make its
owner a multi-millionaire.

There has been, for some years, quite a boom in mining
around Oaxaca, and some Americans have made large
fortunes. Each year a larger number of prospectors are
at work seeking new deposits, and I heard many amazing
stories of finds of rich ores. One mine-owner told me that
an Indian had brought him some specimens which assayed
nearly a thousand dollars per ton, and offered for a small
sum to tell him where the deposit could be found. "Of
course/' he added, "this piece of ore may have been excep-
tionally rich, but if the rest only pans out a tenth part as
well, I shall soon be a millionaire." Stories like this are
responsible for the increasing number of prospectors who
prowl about Mexico, spending their days in searching for
the gold or silver which is to make them wealthy. A few
succeed; but the majority, for a number of reasons, are
doomed to failure.

Some of the stories of sudden wealth won by prospectors

CHRISTMAS AT LOS REYES 297

are marvellous. I heard of an American who spent several
years and all his money in searching for silver near Oaxaca,
at last securing a claim which seemed to promise paying
ore. He invested his last few dollars in dynamite and blew
up the rocks in sheer desperation. The blast revealed a
wonderfully rich vein, and he eventually sold the property
for two hundred thousand dollars.

There are many other mines than those of silver and gold
in the vicinity of Oaxaca, for some of them, notably in the
Ocotlan and Taviche districts, are rich in copper and lead.
Americans, as already remarked, have been most keen in
getting control of these properties, and during the past few
years have invested fully ten million dollars in mines and
smelting plants.

When I was not occupied in listening to stories of mineral
wealth at the club, I found a great deal of amusement at
night in strolling about the plaza and watching a line of
booths where all kinds of gambling games were in progress.
These booths are set up in the plazas of most Mexican
towns during the Christmas season, gambling of any sort
being dear to the Mexican heart.

In Oaxaca the most popular game, patronized by the
richer plungers, was played on a large table divided into
squares containing colored pictures of animals, such as a
horse, a donkey, tiger, lion, serpent, and over each was a
certain number. Players bought chips or counters for ten
cents each and staked them on whichever of the animals
they selected. A man at the table turned a wheel contain-
ing as many balls as there were animals, and each bearing
a number corresponding to that marked on the animal.
Whichever ball eventually dropped out of the wheel was the
winning number. This table was usually surrounded by
a large crowd of both sexes. When the wheel was turned
and the winning number dropped out, the dealer would

298 MEXICO

shout, "Burro," "Tigre" or "Elephante," as the case might
be. A certain number of the losing counters were sub-
tracted by the proprietor as his percentage and the remain-
der, divided among the winners, were exchangeable for
money at their face value. There were also tables for faro,
monte (the three-card game), roulette, etc., the betting being
for any amount from a centavo to a dollar. There were
even booths where little boys and girls sat gambling away
their pennies at a simple sort of game with picture-cards, on
which were rude pictures of a cow, a boy, a man or a horse.

In these street festivities many Americans were showing
keen interest, especially those who had come in from the
mines for the fiesta week. Groups of them usually stood
around the gambling booths. There is quite a large Amer-
ican colony in Oaxaca, and one of the districts where most
of the Americans have their homes is becoming gradually
Americanized. The colony has built two churches, and I
believe that an American school has also been established.
Most of the American women whose husbands are engaged
in mining prefer to live in the town, where they can have
some recreation, meet other Americans and escape the dis-
comforts of the mining camps. There are quite a number
of American children in Oaxaca, and these Yankee boys
and girls astonish the Mexicans by their free and indepen-
dent ways.

In Oaxaca the home life of the Mexicans can be studied
to even better advantage than in the capital, and this is
especially true of the shopping arrangements. The grocers'
stores, for instance, are extremely interesting; they have
a strange, old-world appearance, and are conducted in a
manner which gives a very good insight into the domestic
customs of the people.

Almost every large grocery store in Mexico is owned by
Spaniards, just as many dry-goods establishments are owned

CHRISTMAS AT LOS REYES 299

by Frenchmen, and hardware stores by Germans, and all
of them are alike. Behind an unpolished zinc counter are
arranged the shelves and pyramids of dust-covered bottles
of liquor. At one side is a small bar-room. The salesmen
are always Spanish or Mexican youths in their shirt-sleeves,
with grimy hands, and they slam each piece of silver on
the counter to test its metal with an almost vindictive
motion. A big business is done each day, although it
takes a hundred sales to aggregate a dollar ; for, as already
mentioned, everything in Mexico is bought by the day's
supply or even for one meal. At a grocer's store you can
buy a cent's worth of sugar, tea or coffee. The grocer will
not permit a customer with one cent to escape, and he will
break a package of cigarettes to sell a pennyworth with the
same apparent alacrity as he pours out a centavo glass of
Mexican fire-water. When not engaged in waiting on cus-
tomers, the shop hands employ their time weighing out
small one- and two-cent packages of various classes of staple
articles, deftly doubling and fastening the old newspaper
wrapper without a sign of a string. When the rush comes,
just before the meal hours, these boys hop from one side
of the store to the other, grabbing the ready-made pack-
ages with the greatest swiftness, supplying the many wants
of the cooks in short order.

Oaxaca saw the old year out in a very noisy fashion.
At half-past eleven, on the night of December 31, a mili-
tary band paraded the streets, playing stirring music, and
shortly before midnight stationed itself in the plaza and
played the Mexican National Anthem. Then all the church
bells in the city commenced banging and clanging, excited
citizens leaned from their windows and fired off rifles and
pistols or exploded fireworks till the din was deafening.
With this uproar the new year was ushered in.

CHAPTER XIX

PREHISTORIC MEXICO

THE more one travels in Mexico the more does one be-
come impressed with the fact that it is a country of old
races of ancient civilizations and a wonderful past. Scat-
tered all over the land are the ruins of cities, palaces,
temples and fortresses, the architecture and extent of which
are amazing to even the present age. Of their builders
little or nothing is known. They may have lived thou-
sands of years ago and may even have been contemporary
with the people of Nineveh.

The traces of these ancient races are especially numerous
in the Valley of Oaxaca, where the plains and hills abound
in the remains of their wonderful 'works. Notable among
these are the ruins on the summit of Monte Alban, about
five miles from Oaxaca. Monte Alban and other mountains
near Oaxaca rise abruptly from the plain like huge pyramids
to a height of four thousand feet or more. On most of
them there are traces of prehistoric dwellings or temples.
Some scientific men have a theory that the plain in the
early days of the world was underwater, and that the moun-
tains were then islands inhabited by various semi-civilized
tribes.

Early in January, in company with an American friend,
I went out to Monte Alban, the foot of which we reached
after a hot and dusty ride. Here we took a rough, winding
trail which led to the summit, and so steep that our panting
horses had to make frequent stops to get their breath. Half-

300

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 301

way up the mountain side we noticed what seemed to
be the remains of former fortress walls almost completely
buried in the earth.

On the summit of the mountain, many acres in extent,
were a number of mounds of earth about twenty-five feet
high, with steep sides. In all directions were great masses
of stones which had formed temples or forts, and below
some of these were narrow subterranean passages and im-
mense sculptured blocks. One of these mounds had been
excavated, revealing a massively constructed court nine
hundred feet long and two hundred feet wide. It is of
rectangular shape, is built of huge square stones and faces
the west. During the excavations at this point some neck-
laces of agate, fragments of worked obsidian (volcanic glass)
and golden ornaments of fine workmanship were found.

A peon and his boy, who joined us while we were examin-
ing the ruins, volunteered to show us the sights. They took
us to another mound which had, by the law which has
recently come into force, been partly excavated by the
government archaeologists, who alone are permitted to ex-
plore any of the Mexican ruins. Their investigations had
disclosed four large, rudely sculptured stone figures in bas
relief of more than life size, seated in a row like the figures
found in Egyptian temples. Some of them resemble
the Aztec figures in the National Museum of Mexico, but
one has pronounced Mongolian features and what looks
like a Chinaman's pigtail. "Who are these fellows ?" my
companion asked the peon. Pointing to them, one after
another, he replied, " San Miguel, San Jose, San Pedro and
King Montezuma," the last being the figure with the pig-
tail. That is how the peon had solved the problem which
perplexes scientific men.

All theories as to the age of these ruins are mere guess-
work. Some archaeologists declare them to be thousands

302 MEXICO

of years old — perhaps older than Nineveh. Nobody
knows. They are traditionally stated to have existed
when the Aztecs came to Mexico ; but Aztec traditions are
quite untrustworthy.

Guided by our peon, we crawled through an opening in
one of the mounds. The entrance was built in a perfect
square, the builders of Alban not knowing anything of the
building of arches with keystones. In the cavernous in-
terior of the mound, lined with solid square stones, we dis-
turbed a number of bats which came whizzing about our
heads until we emerged through another square door at the
other side.

Nearly all the ruins on Monte Alban are covered with
mounds of earth which has collected and covered them in
the course of ages. From their position it is surmised that
they formed part of an ancient stronghold or place of refuge
for the ancient inhabitants in time of war. The fact that
a number of stone idols have been found among the ruins
seems also to prove that some of the structures were used
as temples.

Still more wonderful in size, extent and architecture
are the famous ruins of Mitla, a great city of prehistoric
times and now the site of a small Indian village. The jour-
ney of twenty-five miles from Oaxaca to Mitla is not with-
out its discomforts and, like many other Mexican sight-see-
ing trips, requires a great deal of time, patience and physical
endurance. The first stage of the journey is generally
accomplished in a little street-car drawn by two mules,
which runs to the village of Tula, six miles distant ; and it
was in this queer little conveyance that I started off on
my expedition to Mitla early one morning.

Leaving the cobble-paved streets of Oaxaca, the car
went along a country road between fields of sugar-cane and
the ubiquitous maguey. Then it crossed a treeless, sun-

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 303

baked plain which extends to the mountains, relieved only
by an occasional green, irrigated field. In the midst of this
plain is situated the little village of Tula, a place of adobe
huts, cactus hedges and Indians. Rising from among the »
rather squalid dwellings are the towers of a large, ancient I
church, brightly tinted and picturesque, embowered in a*
mass of tropical verdure.

In the churchyard, which is unusually well kept, stands j
the famous "big tree of Tula," one of the tree-monarchs I
of the world. It is an ahuetl or species of cypress, and its <**
age is unknown, but when Corte*s came with his army and
rested under it, the natives of the district had traditions
that it had stood there when their forefathers came to the
Valley of Oaxaca. It may have given shade to the builders
of Mitla. Truly impressive in size and appearance is the
" big tree." Six feet from the ground it is over one hundred \
and fifty-four feet round the trunk, and twenty-eight people j
with outstretched arms touching each other's finger-tips
can barely complete the circuit. The trunk is a group of
compact sections something like that of the cottonwood
trees, and towers up to a great height. Standing
under the sombre, wide-spreading foliage, one gains an
impression of awe and solemnity, a feeling such as might
be experienced in the dim cloisters of some ancient ca-
thedral. On one side of this giant of the forest is a tablet
with an inscription by Humboldt, the German traveller f
and scientist, who visited Tula and Mitla in 1806. It has;'
been there so long that the bark has grown over it, oblit-!
erating part of the inscription.

A light American buggy, drawn by two mules, and driven
by a taciturn peon, took me from Tula to Mitla, a distance
of some twenty miles. Our road led over the plain, dotted
here and there with Indian pueblos and haciendas; then
on to the quaint old town of Tlacolula, with its cactus-

304 MEXICO

hedged lanes, and pretty little plaza, its beautiful domed
church, picturesque old inn and casa municipal. A short
stop was made here, and it gave me an opportunity to see
the interior of the parish church, which is famous for its
altar, the front of which is covered with plates of solid silver,
ornamented with elaborate repousse work ; the altar cande-
labra, which are over five feet high, and the exquisite lamps
are also of silver.

On leaving Tlacolula we entered a broad valley where
hundreds of huge boulders, weighing thousands of tons, were
scattered about; all around was an arid, rocky country.
A few miles of this, across the wide, rocky bed of a stream,
then dried to a brooklet, but a large river in the rainy
season, led to our journey's end at the hospitable hacienda
of Don Felix Quero.

The owner of a typical Mexican hacienda, Don Felix
provides accommodation for travellers who visit Mitla ; and
connected with his house is the general store of the district,
of which he is sole proprietor. Here the Indians come to
trade for provisions and the luxuries of life and spend their
meagre centavos. Don Felix and his swarthy son are kept
busy every evening selling such things as a centavo's worth
of coffee or two centavos' worth of cigarettes and mescal,
or half a cent's worth of lard, sugar, salt or matches.
Some of the wealthier Indians — the peon millionaires —
will actually buy five or ten cents' worth of aguardiente
(fire-water) or such an almost unheard-of luxury as a five-
cent cigar.

The next morning, in sunshine which was positively
grilling, I went out to see the ruins, which are but a short
distance from the hacienda. Passing through the village,
with its thatched huts almost hidden behind hedges of tall
cactus, a few minutes' walk along the dusty road brought
me to the wonderful structures of prehistoric Mexico.

PBEHISTORIC MEXICO 305

Extending for some distance were mounds of earth, masses
of fallen masonry, huge blocks and piles of debris ; in the
midst of all this was a series of long, low buildings of mas-
sive stone bearing a striking resemblance to the temples
of ancient Egypt. Some were almost demolished; others
were in a fairly good state of preservation.

The Mitla ruins consist of four distinct groups facing
the four points of the compass, and which were originally
of the same general style, the north group being the best
preserved. In both the north and south groups are four-
walled courts built round a central patio and also having
their lines agreeing with the compass points. Along the
entire front of each of these buildings is a broad, stone-paved
terrace broken by wide flights of steps which lead to square
Egyptian doorways. But in marked contrast to the struc-
tures of early Egypt the outer walls of the edifices at Mitla
are composed of oblong panels decorated with typical
Grecques and arabesques, about fifteen geometrical designs
being employed. When viewed at a distance, these seem
to be carved in the stonework; but a closer inspection
reveals that the effect has been produced by thousands of
small pieces of stone let into the face of the building and
fitted together so accurately that no cement was required.
In some cases the lower parts of the walls are faced with
rows of stones so finely polished that they have the ap-
pearance of having been made in a mould.

Wonderfully impressive is the simple dignity of these
prehistoric structures, the architecture and construction
of which have won the admiration of every archaeologist
who has visited Mitla. "The walls/' says an American
technical writer, "present the appearance of preserving the
most absolutely pure lines, and one is filled with astonish-
ment when it is considered what a number of centuries
have passed since these pretentious palaces or temples were

306 MEXICO

built. The excellent workmanship shown in these struc-
tures is such that, with the remarkable precision displayed
in the cutting of the stones and their elaborate ornamenta-
tion, they must in their prime have presented a wonderful
aspect."

One of the most impressive features of the ruins is the
Hall of Monoliths, a great corridor extending through the
entire length of the north court, a vast structure which
covers eight thousand square feet. Standing in a row in
the centre of this hall are six massive monolithic columns,
each over eleven feet high and about eight feet round, each
of them quite plain and without any pedestal or capital.
From here a dark passage leads into a second hall sur-
rounded by four smaller rooms, one of which, known as
the Audience Chamber, is beautifully decorated in stone
mosaic and is in almost perfect condition. In each of these
rooms are square niches faced with heavy stone, somewhat
of the piscina type, and believed to have been shrines in
which were placed small figures of gods. In one of the
rooms, called the Hall of Mosaics, which has inlaid orna-
mentation of exquisite design, the walls in some places show
signs of having been covered with a hard plaster and richly
colored, some traces of dark red paint still remaining.

The ancient builders not only used stone but bricks
composed of adobe and pulverized rock, possessing wonder-
ful durability. All the structures are decorated in the
same intricate manner ; all are without windows ; and each
is entered by three large square doorways side by side,
the lintels being formed of huge monoliths eighteen feet
long, five feet wide and four feet high. In architecture and
general appearance the ruins of Mitla differ entirely from
those in other parts of Mexico, and are also distinct in being
unadorned by any human or animal figures. As in other
Mexican ruins, however, there are no arches; for the archi-

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 307

tects of Mitla had not reached the stage of arch designing,
and were therefore obliged to avoid curves.

The work of the Mitla builders seems amazing when it is
borne in mind that it was done without machinery and with
the crudest implements ; for the only tools that have been
found on the spot are chisels and axes of untempered
copper. Under these circumstances the shaping and hoist-
ing of the huge blocks into position and the fitting of the
stone mosaics were really marvellous achievements. So
wonderfully, too, were these huge stones put together that
all the earthquakes that have taken place in Mexico in even
historic times have not sufficed to move them from their
position.

Not far from the Hall of Monoliths is a large, dilapi-
dated structure, adjoining which is a comparatively modern
church, obviously built from the ancient materials. This
ruin was once the largest of all, and has been estimated as
covering a space of nearly three hundred feet in length
and six hundred in width. The enclosing walls were six
feet thick. One portion of this temple, if such it were,
was formerly used as a stable, its beautiful frescoed walls
being whitewashed. A few faint vestiges of the decora-
tions still remain, mostly undecipherable hieroglyphics in
conventional life-forms, apparently painted with the same
red pigment as is noticeable in the Audience Chamber.
These are the only inscriptions at Mitla.

In 1902 an entrance which had been blocked up was
discovered in the south court, which, being opened, was
found to lead into a subterranean cruciform chamber some
thirty or forty feet below the floor of the main building.
This crypt has the same style of decoration as in the upper
chambers, except that in this instance the Grecque pattern,
instead of being formed by mosaic, is carved in the solid
stone. This cross-shaped chamber and several others which

308 MEXICO

exist at Mitla were used as tombs, and in each instance their
entrances face the west, the idea of the ancient people
having probably been that the souls of the dead journeyed
to the regions of the setting sun. In some of the tombs
entire skeletons or charred bones were found, also stone or
clay idols, funereal urns which had contained incense and
various other relics; but the chamber last discovered had
evidently been rifled of its contents at some early period.

Until recent years the ruins at Mitla were treated in
much the same way as were many old English castles a few
generations ago. Beautiful structures were demolished by
vandal hands to provide building material for the modern
village of Mitla, and some of the stonework was even carted
into the City of Oaxaca. The Mexican government at
last took charge of the ruins and put a stop to the work of
destruction. Government archaeologists are now engaged
in restoring some of the ancient buildings and superintend-
ing the excavations which are taking place in their vicinity.

The origin of the great structures at Mitla is shrouded
in mystery. Nobody knows or is ever likely to know who
the builders were or at what period these mighty edifices
were raised. Their massive walls are to-day in much the
same condition as when first visited by the Spaniards in the
sixteenth century; the Aztecs at that time could tell prac-
tically nothing concerning the ancient builders. The re-
semblance of the ruins to those of Egypt has, however,
led many savants to believe that the Western world was
visited centuries before its discovery by Columbus. Pres-
cott has declared the structures to be "the work of a people
who passed away under the assaults of barbarism at a
period prior to all traditions, leaving no name or trace of
their existence save these monuments which have become
the riddle of later generations. " According to some au-
thorities, the builders were the earliest races of Mexico, the

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 309

Nahuas or Toltecs, and the age of the ruins has been vari-
ously estimated at from two to five thousand years. The
name Mitla is said to be a Mitlan-Nahuan word meaning
"the place of the dead."

Several recent investigators are of the opinion, however,
that the structures were raised at a much later date by the
Zapotecan race, from whom the present natives of the coun-
try, the Zapotec Indians, are descended. The Zapotecs,
who were there when the Spaniards came, have always
called Mitla in their dialect Zyaboa, meaning "the centre
of rest." They certainly have much the same type of
features as those found in the stone figures and pottery
which are unearthed among the ruins, but there the resem-
blance ends ; for the modern Zapotecs of Oaxaca are typical
Indian peons, while the ancient builders of Mitla had evi-
dently made great advances in the arts of civilization.

Fully as mysterious as the identity of the builders is the
purport of the structures themselves. Whether they were
temples, palaces or fortresses is never likely to be known
with any degree of certainty. The general opinion, how-
ever, is that they were temples, and this gains support
from the fact that tombs have been discovered beneath
several of the buildings. The ruins are also supposed to
mark the site of a great city of prehistoric times, the entire
valley being strewn with the remains of walls and columns.
Idols of clay and jars of terra-cotta are found everywhere,
and earthenware drain-pipes have also been dug up.
There is every evidence, too, that the now arid valley once
supported an immense population.

I spent the entire day in the midst of these mighty ruins,
and would gladly have journeyed twice the distance from
Mexico City to see them; for the famous Palace of the
Alhambra, with all its glories, is scarcely more imposing.
As I stood in the great Hall of Monoliths on the evening of

310 MEXICO

my visit, its mysterious walls touched by the rays of the
setting sun, I re-created, in fancy, the great structures. I
could imagine the stately march of princes and warriors
through the long corridors or the wild chants of priests
engaged in their sacred rites. What a vista of the days
when the world was young, mystic primeval times when —

"Wai, I've seen Mitla, and I'll admit it's quite a place;
but if some of our young men from the Tec' couldn't
have taught them Toltecs a few things, then I've lost my
reckoning."

I turned and found myself confronted by an elderly
American woman, thin, wiry and determined, who stood,
umbrella in hand, regarding the line of ancient monoliths
with a defiant air, as if challenging all the past races of
Mitla to dispute her word.

" Yes, sir, I rather guess that some of our young men from
the Tec' could have given 'em a few wrinkles."

" What is the Tec' ?" I ventured to ask.

The old lady gave me a withering look which said as
plain as words, "Well, you're about as ignorant as a Toltec."

"Of course I mean the Technological Institoot of Chi-
cago," she replied. "Why, some of our young men from
that institootion are simply astonishing the world, and
if they couldn't turn out a better column than that, well,
then they ain't got no business a-getting their diplomas
as architects." Here she gave the offending column a re-
sounding whack with her umbrella, as if to show her dis-
approval of its primitive lines.

"They knew how to build, them Toltecs did," she con-
tinued, a little more leniently, "but, law me, the world has
been a-moving since their time. They couldn't have built
a skyscraper to save their necks. Why, our young men
learn all about building them big twenty-story buildings,
and I reckon them Toltecs would just open their eyes if

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 311

they could see some of 'em." With this parting shot at
the past, the tourist lady disappeared through the ancient
doorway. Alas, poor builders of Mitla, how little did you
imagine that your efforts would one day be eclipsed by the
young men from the Chicago Tec'.

On returning to the hacienda, I found that the old lady
had just arrived with her son, a gloomy, morose youth who
wore, spectacles, and was probably a graduate of the famous
institution. I have frequently met tourists of this type
in my wanderings. None of them seem to enjoy travelling
or the sights that they see, and why they ever travel I have
never been able to discover.

After viewing the wonders of ancient Mitla, it seems im-
possible to believe that the Zapotec Indians now inhabiting
the valley are in any way related to the builders of old whose
works astonish the present age. Living in small huts of
adobe, the men follow the usual peon occupations of farm
laboring, and the herding of cattle, sheep and goats ; the
women are kept busy with their everlasting tortilla-making
and clothes- washing. The Zapotecs are of short, stocky,
muscular build, but are not bad looking, and do not have
the flat noses which distinguish so many of the Indians
further north. In some districts they speak very little
Spanish, the use of the Zapotec dialect being very general.

A number of pagan superstitions and practices still sur-
vive among them, a belief in witchcraft being very general ;
they also have some peculiar medical customs. Once hi
the market-place at Oaxaca two aged and wrinkled Indian
dames were pointed out to me as great curanderas or wise
women. Most of the Indian communities have no other
doctors.

These curanderas usually claim to have a great knowledge
of medical science and make use of some very queer remedies.
According to their superstitions, air can enter the human

312 MEXICO

system through blows or unusually vigorous sneezing, and
will then cause nervous tremblings, sore eyes and swellings.
To effect a cure, lotions, plasters and bandages are em-
ployed. When the alimentary canal is obstructed, it is
because undigested food has adhered to the stomach or has
formed into little balls which rattle about in the intestines.
Heroic treatment is needed for this condition, and a drop
of quicksilver is usually prescribed, which, swallowed at
a gulp, will generally effect a cure or kill the patient.
Tiricia, the word used for homesickness, melancholia or
insomnia, is caused by a subtle vapor produced by the
action of the moon and dew, and is absorbed through the
pores. A sensible prescription — change of scene, good com-
pany and tonics — is usually given for this. Mai de ojo
or evil eye causes the sufferer to fade away or die of in-
anition, and is a disease common among children. To draw
away the attention of the "evil eye," bright, attractive
objects are hung near the patient. For a child who is slow
in learning to talk, a diet of boiled swallows is often pre-
scribed. Certain colors are supposed to work wonderful
cures, and in cases of paralysis blue and red beads ground
fine are sometimes administered. The curandera is also
called upon to prepare love potions and to supply poisons,
which will cause delirium, insanity and even death.

The Zapotecs have a number of strange dances, includ-
ing the Devil Dance, which usually takes place on the feast-
days of the saints to whom their villages are dedicated.
On these occasions some of the dancers have their bodies
painted to represent skeletons, and also wear strange
feathered head-dresses. An American acquaintance who
had come from a mining camp some thirty miles from
Oaxaca told me that he attended one of these dances, which
took place in an Indian pueblo. The Zapotec ball-room
was an open space near the village, and here the dance went

PREHISTORIC MEXICO 313

on by the light of a blazing fire, the dancers, men and women,
being arrayed in all kinds of fantastic garb. "But what
astonished me," said the American, "were three Indians
dressed in old-fashioned French zouave uniforms. One
had evidently belonged to an officer, and was covered with
gold lace. To my surprise, I learned that the fathers of
these Indians had stripped the uniforms from the bodies of
French soldiers after one of the battles near Oaxaca in 1865.
The uniforms had been carefully preserved, and the cloth
must have been wonderfully good to have been in such
sound condition after so many years.

" The Indian who wore the officer's uniform said to me :
'When my father took it, there were big gold pieces like
American gold coins on it. My father sold these at the
pawnshop. There was also a gold cross, and that he gave
to our padre.' ' A strange ending for the uniform and
decorations of a gallant officer of Napoleon the Third !

CHAPTER XX

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN

" INFLUENZA epidemic in Mexico." Thus read the head-
ing of a special article which appeared in one of the Ameri-
can-Mexican newspapers during my stay in Oaxaca. The
news was not at all surprising ; for it does not require a long
residence in Mexico to realize that the unwashed, filthy
living peon is a ready catcher and transmitter of any in-
fectious disease. From Mexico City the malady soon
reached Puebla, and in a short time it had invaded Oaxaca,
where, despite the mild climate, it had numerous victims.
I contracted a bad case of it myself, and did not improve
matters by returning to Puebla, the inhaling of dust in
large quantities on the long railway journey not being
exactly a specific for the complaint.

"Try Cuautla," said the doctor whcir I consulted at
Puebla; "there's nothing like it in a case of influenza with
bronchial complications.'' My first thought was that
Cuautla was some strange Mexican drug, and was wondering
whether it would be a nauseous dose, when the doctor pro-
ceeded to enlighten me. " Cuautla," said he, " is the name
of a popular health resort between Puebla and Mexico City,
the climate of which does wonders for sufferers from lung
and bronchial troubles."

Upon making inquiries at the railway office about trains
to Cuautla, the clerk handed me an illustrated pamphlet
with a fine colored picture on the cover representing a
Mexican tropical scene. It bore the title, "Cuautla,

314

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 315

Mexico's Carlsbad." What ! I thought, another Carlsbad ?
In glowing language the booklet described Cuautla as
an earthly paradise with a magnificent climate, beautiful
scenery, splendidly equipped hotels and a warm sulphur
spring whose waters were a certain specific for almost every
human ailment. What more could one desire ? But with
a keen memory of another Mexican Carlsbad and its prim-
itive surroundings I was determined not to be caught
a second time nor to allow my hopes to be raised too
high.

Cuautla is about a hundred miles or so from Puebla, and
the speedy trains of the Interoceanic Railway take about
ten hours to make the journey. The train which I took
left about seven o'clock in the morning ; it was not timed
to reach Cuautla until five in the evening ; and as there was
not any restaurant at any intermediate station, a somewhat
terrifying prospect of starvation faced travellers. How
were they to get their luncheon ? A little pamphlet given
away by an American tourist agency and evidently written
by an accomplished press-agent gave me the desired in-
formation : —

"At a certain station on the road," said my traveller's
guide, l ' your train will stop for some twenty minutes . Here
you will be greeted by graceful Indian women, — beauties,
many of them, — with their olive skins and dark, flashing
eyes, bearing themselves with queenly grace in their dainty
rebosas and flowing garments, white as the driven snow.
They will offer you such dainties as tamales, chili-con-carne
and tortillas, piping hot from their little stoves, and pre-
pared with all the scrupulous cleanliness of a Parisian chef.
They will bring you dainty refrescos of freshly gathered
pineapple or orange to quench your thirst, and pastry such
as your mother may have made when her cooking was at
its prime."

316 MEXICO

Now, what more could any reasonable traveller demand ?
What need was there for a restaurant when there were all
these good things to be enjoyed? I showed my guide to
an American friend before I started. He chuckled, gave
a knowing wink and remarked, " Great is the faith of man,
for after all your experiences you can still believe in a Mexi-
can guide-book." "But," I said, "here it is in black and
white, the dainty cooking, the clean Indians — " "That
settles it, " he interrupted. "When you come across a clean
Indian in this part of the country, telegraph me at my
expense." He added, "If I were in your place, I would
be on the safe side and take some provisions along." I
took his advice, and was afterwards profoundly thankful
that I did so.

Between Puebla and Cuautla the railway descends to
the hot lands, the descent being marked by a decided in-
crease in temperature. On this account the weather tow-
ards midday became uncomfortably warm. About one
o'clock, in dazzling sunlight, we stopped at the station
where, according to the guide-book, the Indian beauties
were to greet us. There certainly were a lot of women
waiting, and they came rushing forward to meet the train ;
but what I saw completely took away my appetite. There
were the usual Indian women food-sellers in their faded
blue rebosas and dusty skirts, most of them old, withered
and uncleanly, having been born, I fear, with a rooted
aversion to soap and water. Some of these beldames were
squatting outside the station, cooking various queer foods
on crude charcoal stoves. I watched the process of tamale-
making, not exactly an appetizing sight. An old lady
thrust her rather dirty hand into a jar containing chopped
meat and other ingredients, took out a handful and slapped
it on a piece of tortilla dough which she deftly wrapped
round it until it formed a sort of roll. This she plunged

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 317

into some boiling fat, and in a few minutes it was cooked.
" Oh, what delicious tamales they're a-making. Mercy !
I'm going to have some." The speaker was a Western
young lady who was travelling with her father, mother and
two brothers. Some Westerners apparently have strong
nerves as well as appetites, at least these did; for they
called to the Indian woman, who brought them her greasy
delicacies, of which the whole family partook with great
relish. A solemn young man who accompanied the party
insisted on having the Mexican equivalent of a jam tart,
and managed to make one of the women understand him
by means of dumb signs. The old lady rammed her dirty
and rather greasy hand into a jar of jam, took out a handful,
slapped it on a piece of pastry, and presto ! there was the
jam tart.

The Mexican passengers were, of course, even less fas-
tidious. They bought the Indian dainties recklessly, load-
ing themselves with them externally and internally. I was
content to appease my hunger with some biscuits and
cheese and to quench my thirst with some Tehuacan water.
I expect, in common with my fellow-men, to eat a peck of
dirt in my lifetime, but I positively decline to take it all
at one dose. So much for the guide-book. I was now
ready for Cuautla.

On my arrival there, I crossed a pretty little plaza op-
posite the station and reached the Hotel Morelos, an estab-
lishment under American management where I had ar-
ranged to stay. It was the usual old mansion that had
been turned into a hotel and very little altered. There
was a large interior patio, with fountain, trees and flowers ;
a large garden adjoined this filled with orange trees, banana
plants and palms, with great masses of bougainvillea grow-
ing everywhere. All the rooms opened into the patio,
and on one side of it there was a long, rustic dining-room.

318 MEXICO

The place looked very old-fashioned and crude, but was
interesting and picturesque, and in the mild climate of
Cuautla, where outdoor life is so pleasant, many luxuries
indispensable elsewhere could be dispensed with. The
rooms were furnished in the usual Mexican style, with
tiled floors and one or two rugs, but were clean and com-
fortable.

The attractions of the hotel were hardly up to those of
a Carlsbad establishment, for it had neither a writing nor
a smoking room ; but the terms were rather more attractive
than the usual Carlsbad tariff, being about two dollars a day
inclusive. It is true there was a good deal of Mexican
about the cooking, but the meals were not at all bad and
the service very fair. There were many visitors at the
hotel, chiefly Americans, most of whom had fled from the
capital to escape influenza or to recover from it. But
for the tropical surroundings, one could easily have imagined
one's self at an American resort.

Situated at an altitude of about five thousand feet,
Cuautla has a splendid winter climate, fully rivalling that
of Cuernavaca, the mean temperature averaging seventy
degrees the year round. It is a quaint, old-fashioned place,
with narrow, cobble-paved streets, and houses of the usual
low, flat-roofed type. As I strolled about the town the
next morning, I noticed some unusually amusing signs of
Americanization. An enterprising barber, for example,
displayed a big signboard with the English inscription,
" Hygienic, non-cutting barber shop/' as a tempting in-
ducement to tourists, and one or two other establishments
displayed in their windows the interesting announcement,
"American spoke here."

Before the Conquest, Cuautla was an Indian settlement
of some importance; and in 1600 the present town was
founded by the Spaniards. In 1812, during the War of

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 319

Independence, it was the scene of some fierce fighting.
It was in that year that General Morelos, the Mexican
patriot, with a small force, was shut up in the town and
besieged by a large Spanish army under General Calleja.
After a siege of three months, Morelos was enabled to evacu-
ate the place, but not until he was starved out. During
the siege food became so scarce that cats were sold for six
dollars, and rats and lizards for one and two dollars. One
street in the town is called "Armaguras de Calleja," which
means " Bitterness of Calleja," the forces of the Spanish
general having suffered terribly in this particular thorough-
fare. Another street, called " Las Victimes," is so called be-
cause the Spaniards, after entering the town, are said to
,have cut the throats of all the women and children in its
houses.

Cuautla is also famous for having the oldest railway
station in the world, the crumbling, ancient structure which
is now used for this purpose having been the Church of
San Diego built in 1657. Near it was a convent now also
used for business purposes. When the law appropriating
church property was enforced in 1856, the Franciscan
fathers who then occupied the church and adjacent build-
ings vacated the place, and in 1881 the railway company
purchased it for its present use.

The day after my arrival I went into the old church,
the body of which is now used as a warehouse, while one
side of it bordering the railway line provides accommodation
for the waiting-room and various offices. A quantity of
wine-barrels were piled up at the spot where the high altar
had formerly stood, and all kinds of merchandise were stored
in other parts of the building. Over the door was an in-
scription, the first words of which seem appropriate enough
to the present condition of the once sacred edifice: "Terri-
bilis est iste hie domus dei et porta coeli " (How dreadful

320 MEXICO

is this place. This is none other but the house of God and
this is the gate of heaven).

The warm sulphur spring — the great attraction of
Cuautla, and its only claim to be reckoned a spa — is some
three miles out of the town, and visitors go out there on
horseback, or in a wagonette which makes the trip several
times a day. In the daytime the roads are too dusty, and
it is too hot, for walking.

In a blaze of sunshine which was worthy of the sub-
tropics, I started for the springs the morning after my
arrival, riding in one of the wagonettes, which was well
filled with passengers. Rumbling through the cobble-
paved streets and almost dislocating our bones, the vehicle
at last reached the white, dusty highroad which led out
into the country. For most of the way it is bordered with
large banana plantations, and the tall plants were loaded
with green fruit. These plantations are artificially irrigated,
and even in what was now the dry season streams were
running through them. There are several rivers round
Cuautla, and in the hottest weather the country is well
watered. It is, in fact, one of Cuautla's great charms that
everywhere there is running water, through the streets
and roads, in the gardens and plazas and through the fields.
Irrigation has made the land to blossom like the rose, and
after seeing so much of the dry, arid districts, the green trees
and fields, the miles of fruit trees, the graceful palms and
wealth of flowers were a welcome sight.

Later on the road passed over some barren, rocky hills,
from the summit of which there were some magnificent
views. All around, in the distance, were rolling, reddish
mountains, and far beyond these could be seen the snow-
covered peaks of Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl. The air
was wonderfully clear and the sky the never changing,
cloudless blue. By the roadside were occasional Indian

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 321

huts, not of the usual square, flat-roofed type, but circu-
lar, and looking something like round English haystacks.
They are built partly of adobe and partly of bamboo, inter-
woven with reeds and rushes, the roofs being thatched with
grass. Most of them were embowered in a jungle of tropi-
cal vegetation and oftentimes in a dense thicket of green
bamboo. The peons here seemed to look a shade cleaner
than elsewhere, probably because there was plenty of water
in the neighborhood; their clothing of homespun cotton,
too, looked almost white.

My fellow-travellers in the wagonette were two French
families, men, women, boys and girls, and they talked in-
cessantly of the wonderful sulphur bath they were going
to enjoy; but when we reached the spring I could see no
signs of a bath-house. Flowing through a narrow ravine
was a small stream which at one point formed a waterfall,
pouring over a high bluff into a large rocky basin. This
basin was divided into two parts by a low brick wall built
through the centre.

On our arrival, the ladies and girls wandered off in one
direction, and I followed the men and boys in another.
They went under some trees near by, took off their clothes
and donned bathing-suits. The ladies and girls, who had
retired to other trees at a respectful distance, also appeared
in their bathing costumes. They went into the water on
one side of the brick wall, while the men and boys took
possession of that on the other side. That is how this
Mexican Carlsbad is conducted. I did not take a bath, but
I put my hand in the water, finding it tepid, and as the day
was quite hot, I have no doubt that the bathing was very
pleasant. The water is strongly impregnated with sulphur,
and is said to be extremely beneficial in cases of rheumatism
and various other diseases.

The drive or ride out to the springs is about the only

322

amusement at Cuautla, so people contrive to pass away the
time by getting up late and going to bed early. It is, how-
ever, a pretty spot, a midwinter paradise; and if it only
had a good, up-to-date hotel, with organized recreation,
it could be made into a very fine resort. Even as things
are, the place is always crowded during the winter season.

There is another spring of a different kind less than a mile
from Cuautla. It is reached by a beautiful lane, bordered
by a low, moss-grown wall of rough stones and shaded by
an occasional group of banana plants or palms. From this
tropical by-path there was a view over miles of bright green
sugar-cane to the horizon of reddish mountains, and tower-
ing above them all were the two great snow-covered peaks,
standing out sharply against the deep blue sky. The scene
was always magnificent, and in the evenings, when the
sun was setting, the color effects were exquisite beyond
description. At the end of the lane was a wide, clear brook
dashing over the rocks and bordering some cool woods,
full of fine old trees, green as the trees of New England in
early June; beneath them was a carpeting of long, lush
grass and a myriad of bright flowers. Crossing the brook
by some stepping-stones, one could enter the wood and reach
a deep, sandy basin, where several springs forever bubbled
up beneath the water which flowed off in wide streams,
branching in every direction. The only visitors to this
charming spot seemed to be a few Indians who came down
to bathe.

In the vicinity of Cuautla there are several great haciendas
or farming estates, some of them as extensive as counties.
One which employs thousands of men is over three hun-
dred thousand acres in extent, and within its limits are sev-
eral Indian villages with their big churches. This part of
Mexico is a sugar-cane country, and here can be seen great
mills which convert the chopped stalk into sugar, the

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 323

capacity of each mill being estimated by the hundred tons
instead of the pound. From the sugar-mills you can see
the glistening peaks of Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl —
sugar-making within the sight of snow! Is there any
other place on earth revealing such a contrast?

An idea of the size of Mexican haciendas can be gained
from the fact that one of the largest estates near Cuautla
has two railway stations within its limits and its own line of
railway. Such a thing, however, is not at all uncommon
in Mexico.

In the seventeenth century these great estates were to
Mexico what the feudal castles were to Europe in earlier
times. The hacienda house — the great stone mansion
where the haciendado and his family lived — was then
surrounded with farm buildings and the homes of the work-
men. From early morn until night, trains of burros were
constantly going in and out loaded with wood, maize,
vegetables, poultry, baskets of fruit ; the great house having
a life of its own, self-supporting, quite apart from the
State. In the tower of the hacienda chapel, or if there was
no chapel, then from an arch over the main entrance to the
hacienda house, there was usually a bell which had been
blessed. This was rung to call in the field-hands whenever
danger threatened ; and as soon as the alarm sounded they
would drop plough and sickle and run to the great house,
where the women and children gathered in the patio while
the senor armed the men with rifles from the storeroom.
Then from the port-holes of the heavy stone walls, from
the corner turrets and from the protected roof the hacienda's
defenders were able to offer stout resistance against wander-
ing marauders or bands of soldiery in search of plunder.
In these peaceful times the bell is now rung only when rain
or hail threatens in harvest time, as its blessed voice is sup-
posed to be a charm against the elements.

324 MEXICO

In the daily life of these great haciendas many pictu-
resque and beautiful customs still survive. An interesting
description of some of these was given by the author of an
article which recently appeared in one of the Mexican
magazines. "When the day's work is done," says this
writer, "and the last red gleam has faded from the moun-
tains, the field-hands gather together to sing the evening
song of praise. A deep bass begins the chant : —

' Dios te salve Maria/

A shrill, childish voice joins in : —

' Dios te salve Maria.'

Then from the long line of men and women rises the
chorus : —

' Dios te salve Maria
Llena eres de gracia/

The Indian voices vary in pitch from a shriek to a roar.
When the whole company joins in, each singing or yell-
ing:—

' Bendita tu eres
Entre todas las mujeres/

one might imagine it to be the fierce war-song of the Aztec
legions defending their royal city on the lakes. But it is
only the 'Ave Maria' sung to the gentle Mother."

In harvesting grain, short-bladed hand sickles are very
commonly used. Whenever a reaper straightens up to
rest from his work, he raises his hat and shouts in a high,
monotonous key, "Ave Maria, Santissima !" Some fellow-
worker in a neighboring field answers back, and so round all
the wide fields a continuous cry of rejoicing goes up. If
a field is fruitful, a cross, hung with wisps of grain and stiff
decorations made from the maguey flower, is set up in a
corner of it as a sign of thankfulness. Even the noxious

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 325

pulque has its peculiar religious rites. As the peon pours
the agua miel, freshly gathered from the maguey, into the
evil-smelling cowhide vats of the tinacal, he calls out in a
loud tone : " In the name of the holy sacrament on the altar !
Hail to the most pure Virgin Mary ! May the pulque turn
out well." Every man in the building raises his hat.

On many of the larger haciendas the baronial magnifi-
cence which was once common is still kept up. Some of
the great estates include villages with a population of peons,
all laborers employed by the haciendado. It would take
days to ride from one end to the other of these vast domains.
Years ago, when there were no inns, any traveller could stop
at the hacienda, sure of hospitality and a hearty welcome.
In northern Mexico there is one immense hacienda which
formerly controlled twenty thousand peons. Some of the
great estates still remain in the hands of the original families,
to whom they were granted at the Conquest. The owners
of these properties enjoy princely incomes, and most of
them keep elaborate houses in the capital, where they spend
their wealth with a lavish hand.

Many of the hacienda houses are comfortably furnished ;
but even the richest Mexicans are more or less barbaric in
their household ideas, and know very little of those luxuries
which go to make up the delight of an American home.
The cooking is usually atrocious, there are rarely bath-
rooms and other requisites, and so primitive are the arrange-
ments that very few people accustomed to modern civilized
life would care to visit them.

The great hacienda system has been a serious obstacle
to progress in Mexico; and if these huge estates were di-
vided up among smaller proprietors and properly cultivated,
the country would be much richer. As it is, half the land
is lying idle, going to waste, or is only half tilled.

The agricultural methods in vogue on many of the old

326 MEXICO

estates are still very primitive, and there is oftentimes a
curious mingling of the ancient and modern. The latest
improved harvesting and threshing machines can sometimes
be seen in operation, while not far off peons are ploughing
with the old wooden ploughs and driving along the lumbering
ox carts. Grain is still threshed in some places by driving
teams of horses or mules over it every day for hours at a
time, and is winnowed by being tossed in the air, While
accepting a few modern improvements, the average haci-
endado clings tenaciously to many of the old ways and is
strongly opposed to giving them up.

A wonderful variety of grains, fruits and vegetables
are grown on the haciendas of Mexico. In the north the
chief products are wheat, barley, maize, and other cereals,
and in the south, sugar-cane, coffee, cocoa, vanilla, tobacco,
pineapples, bananas and india-rubber. All over the coun-
try there is a great cultivation of fibre plants. Some ha-
ciendas, too, are exclusively devoted to the breeding of
horses, cattle, and other live stock.

Visits to the haciendas in the surrounding country form
a very interesting diversion to life at Cuautla, and there
are many interesting scenes to be witnessed in the old town
itself. For, like many of the smaller Mexican towns, Cuautla
still retains much of the romance and manners of sunny
Spain. At night in the plaza there is Spain in miniature.
One evening I passed an old fonda, open to the street, in
which were gathered a number of peons, in their blankets
and sombreros, drinking their aguardiente and playing
their favorite game of picture-cards. Three picturesque
natives twanged away merrily on old-fashioned mandolins
and occasionally burst into song. In the neighboring
plaza, beneath a sky brilliant with tropical stars and an
unclouded moon, there strolled a few dark-eyed senoritas
with their duennas, regarded with languishing looks by

LIFE IN AN OLD MEXICAN TOWN 327

the young senores who stood in groups beneath the old trees,
greeting the fair ones with an occasional "adios." In a
side street I caught a glimpse of one or two faithful " bears "
standing below the balconies, chatting in low tones with
the Juliets above. Evidently romance had not yet passed
away in old Cuautla.

CHAPTER XXI

IN THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL

As almost every tourist who gazes upon Mont Blanc is
seized with the ambition to make an ascent, so there are
few travellers who can behold Popocatepetl without feeling
an overwhelming desire to scale this king of Mexican moun-
tains. To do this was once regarded as a wonderful feat,
and the adventurous traveller who performed it was ac-
claimed as a hero. But nowadays, so prosaic has the world
become, that scores of American tourists climb to the snowy
heights of "Popo" every year, including the expedition
as part of their " round-trip" excursions to Mexico.

Popocatepetl had fascinated me from the time I had
first seen its wondrous outline standing sharply against
the blue Mexican sky, its snow-clad tip glistening beneath
the dazzling Mexican sun. Viewing Popocatepetl daily
across the green fields of Cuautla, I became possessed of a
keen desire to emulate the American tripper by including
a climb to the summit as part of my own itinerary. I was
given an unexpected opportunity to realize this desire
when I received an invitation one day to meet some friends
at Amecameca and join them in making an ascent of the
great mountain.

Amecameca is about halfway between Cuautla and Mex-
ico City, or a distance of forty miles. The train which I
took one morning made this journey in something like four
hours ! It was a hot, dusty ride; but as in other Mexican

328

IN THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL 329

railway journeys that I had made the interesting sights to
be seen on the way served to alleviate the discomforts and
slowness of travel.

Between Cuautla and Amecameca there is some won-
derful scenery. Leaving the cultivated valley, the railway
passes between a succession of lofty, treeless, sun-baked
hills ; then, gradually climbing higher, opens up a splendid
view of the surrounding mountains, with the great peaks
of Popocatepetl and Ixtaccihuatl rising above them all.
Many of these hills show unmistakable signs of volcanic
action and the effects of the lava which once flowed from
the two volcanos when they were active.

A great deal of maguey is cultivated in this district, and
there are several large plantations along the line. A num-
ber of fibrous plants are also grown which are extensively
employed in the manufacture of hemp. There are in Mexico
about one hundred and fifty species of agave of various
sizes, all fibre-producing plants, some of them having
leaves as much as six or eight feet long. They thrive best
in the semi-arid districts and in a thin, rocky limestone soil.
All that is necessary is that the soil around the plant should
be kept clear of weeds.

Most important of these fibrous plants is henequen, which
is extensively cultivated in Yucatan, the dry climate and
sandy soil of that part of Mexico being peculiarly adapted
to its cultivation. The fibre produced is used very largely
in the manufacture of carpets, rugs, twines, ropes and
bagging. Owing to the check that Manila hemp crops re-
ceived from the Spanish-American War, Yucatan in recent
years has acquired almost a monopoly of the hemp trade.
Formerly one of the poorest States of Mexico, it has now
become one of the richest. Enormous fortunes have been
made by the henequen growers in the last ten years, many
poor men having suddenly acquired great wealth. The

330 MEXICO

value of the fibres exported from Mexico every year now
amounts to nearly $40,000,000.

Some species of cactus are also valuable for their fibre-
producing qualities, notably the ixtle, which was used ex-
tensively by the Aztecs for weaving blankets. The famous
tilma in the shrine of Guadalupe is made of this material.
It is said that some cacti will produce an excellent quality
of paper pulp, and experiments are being made with them.
If the project is successful, it may do something towards
relieving the situation in the paper trade caused by the
decreasing area of forests available for paper-making
purposes.

The maguey, which supplies the national beverage,
pulque, was found useful in other ways by the ancient races
of Mexico. Its thorns were used for needles and pins, while
the leaves made a good thatch for the roofs of their huts,
and when properly prepared, furnished as good a material
for their writing as the Egyptian papyrus.

As in the trip from Mexico City to Cuernavaca, the
line from Cuautla runs over the mountains, and at one
point it reaches the altitude of nearly eight thousand feet.
It passes through miles of cool pine woods with all the
characteristics of a northern forest, and occasionally there
are glimpses of the great wooded valley leading to Popo-
catepetl, whose pointed snow peak towers above the clouds.
Comparisons are always odious, but to my mind the mag-
nificent distances to be seen here, the glorious blue sky,
the thin, clear air, and the wonderful tints of the mountains
and trees combine to form scenic beauties which rival even
those of the valley of Chamounix and Mont Blanc. At
three in the afternoon I reached Amecameca, met my
friends and had a good night's rest at the comfortable
little hotel in this picturesque town, preparatory to mak-
ing the ascent of the mountain the following day.

ASCENT OF POPOCATEPETL.
View of the snow-clad summit from the Half-way House.

THE JOURNEY'S END.
Mountain-climbers on the summit of Popocatepetl.

IN THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL 331

Not far from Amecameca is a new winter and summer
resort under American management, known as "Popo
Park " — that is how the Americans have abbreviated
" Popocatepetl Park." A large, comfortable hotel has been
started at this place, which has become quite a popular
week-end resort for people in the capital, especially
during the winter months. Before long a motor road will
be completed between Popo Park and the city, the distance
being about forty miles. The hotel is situated in the midst
of the pine woods, and although the air is cool during the
day and sharp at night and in the morning, blazing wood
fires enable the guests to be very comfortable. A number
of wealthy people are building bungalows in the park, which
is destined to become, in time, one of the most popular
resorts in Mexico.

This is the place from which tourists usually make the
ascent of Popocatepetl (17,782 feet). The hotel manage-
ment arranges all the details of the ascent, the cost for each
person being $25. This includes a return ticket from Mex-
ico City, room and board at the hotel, a guide, pack-mule,
and complete outfit of bed, clothing and food for the trip.
For $10 extra the visitor can be carried up the most diffi-
cult part of the route after the animals are left behind,
making the ascent possible to those who are too much af-
fected by the high altitude to exert their strength. Visitors
who come from Mexico City can make the trip to the summit
and return to town in three days.

Our party for the ascent consisted of three, each of us
mounted on a sturdy mule. At midday we stopped for
luncheon at the ranch of El Paraje, a point where many
who set out to scale the mountain often turn back, either
losing courage or finding the strain on the heart and lungs
too great. As we left the ranch and rode onward, the
scenery and vegetation began to change until only a few

332

stunted oyamal trees and patches of withered grass were to
be seen.

When we reached the ranch of Tlamacas at four in the
afternoon, a freezing, bitter wind was blowing, there was
a light fall of snow and we were glad to get inside the hut
and warm ourselves at a wood fire. It was agreed that
we should continue our journey to the summit at three
o'clock in the morning. In spite of the fire and plenty of
blankets, we spent the early hours of the night very uncom-
fortably, as it was impossible to keep out the intense cold.
At two in the morning, after refreshing ourselves with some
hot tea, we commenced the ascent by the light of the full
moon, its brilliant rays reflected by the white field of snow.
As we mounted upwards, the path became more and more
steep, the mules being compelled to stop frequently to
gain their breath. We were forced at last to dismount and
proceed on foot. In the far distance the City of Puebla,
with its twinkling lights, could now be seen, backed by the
towering peak of Orizaba.

As we climbed steadily on, the moon sank behind the
mountain heights and the sky was diffused with the first
rosy flush of the coming dawn, a most beautiful sight.
The green mountain looked so majestic that one could not
wonder that it had taken its place with its companion,
Ixtaccihuatl, in the mythology of the Aztecs. Legend says
that Popocatepetl (the smoking mountain) and Ixtac-
cihuatl (the woman in white) were once giants who, having
displeased the gods, were transformed into mountains.
The appearance of the smaller mountain strikingly illus-
trates this story, for the outline of its summit bears a close
resemblance to the form of a woman shrouded in snow.
After being changed into mountains, the legend adds, the
woman died, but the man was doomed to live on and to
gaze on his beloved forever. At times, in his deep grief,

IN THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL 333

he trembles and moans, while tears of fire course down his
furrowed cheek. Both mountains are extinct volcanoes,
Popocatepetl having been active within historical times.
The fires of Ixtaccihuatl were probably the first to cease,
thus giving rise to the beautiful legend.

People who climb Popocatepetl are warned not to eat
much, which advice is not altogether sound, as the great
strain upon the system is weakening enough without the
exhaustion necessarily caused by the lack of food. Before
we had reached the summit we were all tired out, and our
breathing became so labored that we were obliged to call a
halt. Then we made a final struggle, pushing forward
with a grim determination which was soon rewarded.
A few minutes more of hard climbing brought us to the
crater, and before our eyes was unfolded a magnificent scene.
Around us were the rugged mountain heights, half shrouded
with clouds of varied and beautiful tints, which in the
course of an hour or two drifted away, enabling us to see
into the depths of the vast crater. Here the scene vividly
recalled the descriptions of the infernal regions in Dante's
great poem. The rugged sides of the crater, glistening with
yellow sulphurous incrustations, intermingled with masses
of black volcanic earth and white patches of snow, assumed
a thousand weird shadows and variegated colors; and on
one side was a large pool of intensely green water. As a
fitting accompaniment to this scene the air was filled with
pungent fumes, and a strange noise was heard like the
escaping of steam, combined with another sound which
closely resembled the rapid firing of musketry. One of
these noises is caused by the rush of sulphurous vapor
from great fissures in the crater, called " respiratorios " ;
the other is made by stones which are continually being
detached from the sides of the crater and fall into its depths.
The smoke which issues from the fissures can only be seen

334 MEXICO

at close range, but it was formerly visible from a distance,
thus giving rise to the name Popocatepetl or " smoking
mountain."

After inspecting the bottom of the crater and being half
choked by the sulphurous fumes which issued from its
depths, we were glad to climb back to the outer edge.
The rarefied air was so oppressive that we were constantly
obliged to rest. Shortly afterwards the mists again sur-
rounded us and we seemed to be standing on a rocky island
in the midst of a boundless sea. We afterward learned that
a storm was raging in the neighboring valley. Before long,
however, the sun's rays pierced the mist, and it grew so
warm that we were obliged to discard our blankets.

Popocatepetl is to-day owned by a company, and until
recently a large force of peons were employed in mining the
sulphur, of which there are enormous quantities visible;
but the work of mining is extremely difficult, because the
miners suffer greatly from exposure and the strain resulting
from the high altitude. Work was abandoned a short time
ago owing to these conditions and the difficulties of trans-
portation. When Cortes invaded Mexico, he obtained
the sulphur for making his gunpowder from the crater of
Popocatepetl, some of his adventurous followers scaling
the mountain and bringing down a large supply.

The sulphur miners, after work, used to seat themselves
on mats of rushes, give themselves a push and whiz down
over the snow-field in a couple of minutes. There is said
to be no danger in this feat, and many tourists have under-
taken it. But the snow at the time of our visit was frozen
into hummocks like the waves of a choppy sea, so we had
to trudge down on foot. Having lunched on the summit,
we commenced our descent, reaching Tlamacas a little after
three o'clock, and after a brief rest mounted our mules
and resumed our journey downwards to El Paraje, where

IN THE CRATER OF POPOCATEPETL 335

we spent the night. Next day we were back in Amecameca
again. All our faces were reddened and burned by the glare
from the snow-fields, and our bodies ached from the fatigue
we had undergone, but otherwise we felt none the worse
for our climb.

Before leaving Amecameca I visited the famous sacred
mountain, which is on the outskirts of the town. Here, in
a deep cave which served as a hermitage, once lived the
good friar Martin de Valencia, one of the " twelve apostles
of Mexico," who was sent by Pope Adrian the Sixth as a
missionary to the Indians, with the title of " Vicar of New
Spain." After many years of faithful service he died,
deeply revered by his flock, and was buried at Tlalmanalco ;
but it is said that the Indians secretly removed his body
and buried it in the cave. A legend says that, years after
his death, a mule, bearing an image of the Virgin intended
for the parish church, stopped at the cave and refused to
budge. This was regarded as a miraculous sign that the
image was to be deposited there, and there it has remained
ever since. It is removed once a year, on Ash Wednesday,
when it is taken down, with great pomp, to the church and
placed on the high altar. On Good Friday it is carried back
to the cave. This is the occasion of a great fiesta at Ame-
cameca, and visitors from all parts of Mexico come to see
the passion play which is enacted in the town shortly before
the image is taken back to the shrine. The representation
of the Crucifixion by Indian actors is a wonderful sight.

The play is opened by a body of horsemen enacting the
r61e of centurions, who call upon the people to attend the
sacred ceremony ; whereupon the vast multitude of Indian
spectators makes a general movement to a hill near the
church, supposed to represent Calvary, preceded by the
various characters in the mystic drama. On the way to
the hill a continuous roar goes up from the excited mob,

336 MEXICO

and the representative of Judas is unmercifully pummelled
and kicked. At the head of this strange procession walks
the Indian representing the Saviour, staggering under the
weight of a heavy cross, scourged and reviled by a number
of other Indians representing the Jews. When, at last, the
cross has been erected, and he has been raised and lashed
to it, the air is rent with shrieks and yells, and a general
fight often follows between the representatives of the Chris-
tians and Jews, the latter barely escaping with their lives.

Another weird scene is enacted at night when the sacred
image is conveyed up the mountain side, escorted by a great
multitude with torches, joining at intervals in a wild chant,
while many of the devout crawl on their knees up the rocky
path.

Upon my return to Mexico City, where I arrived in the
evening, I went to the Hotel Sanz. I was surprised to
find this place in festal array, with its patio' decorated with
American and Mexican flags, and a large floral shield bear-
ing the words, "Welcome, Shriners." On inquiry I learned
there was another American invasion in progress, five
hundred members of the masonic order, the Mystic Shriners,
having come down to Mexico from the States to make a
tour through the country and arouse interest in "shrining."
The local newspapers were full of their doings. They were
headed by the officers of the order, who were called "The
Nobles of the Mystic Shrine/7 while the chief officer bore the
imposing title of "The High Imperial Potentate." Many
of the members had brought their wives and daughters, so
that there was a very large party. The wives of some of
the Shriners seemed to take great delight in their husbands'
titles and the pomp and paraphernalia of the order. On
the other hand, I heard one irreverent Shriner, possessed of
the Western craze for abbreviation, remark to an acquaint-
ance, "Say, old man, where's the Imp. Pot. stopping?"

IN THE CEATER OF POPOCATEPETL 337

0, great and imperial potentate, to think that a Shriner
should have dared to brave the awful curses of the mystic
shrine by dubbing you " Imp. Pot."

At their meetings the Shriners wore a sort of Turkish
costume with a red fez, and they greeted each other with
the word " Salaam." Next day, the President gave them
audience at the National Palace, receiving what the Shriners
called a "grand salaam," and being presented with a
jewelled fez. He was also enrolled as a member of the or-
ganization. During their stay in the city the ladies of the
Shriner party conducted a bazaar, which, for some reason
unknown to ordinary mortals, was called a "Jamaica" —
probably some mystic term only to be understood by the
initiated.

The Shriners not only saw the sights of the capital, but
went in special trains to Cuernavaca and other places.
With this swarm of American tourists in the city, San
Francisco Street seemed more like the main street of an
American town than the leading thoroughfare of the Mex-
ican capital. The curio shops, the dulcerias, and the big
department stores all did a rushing business. My admira-
tion for Mexico's President increased, too, at this time.
Half the American tourists were anxious to see him
and grasp his hand in the same way as they treat their own
President when they go to Washington. Some of them,
with an eye to business, sought special interviews with the
President to interest him in some gold-mining project, a
meat-canning factory, an automobile, or even to reveal to
him the wonders of a new patent medicine or hair-restorer.
That so many of them succeeded certainly showed a won-
derful amount of good nature on the part of Mexico's great
ruler.

Before I left the city, nearly fifty women from the
Western States, mostly widows, came down in a body to

338 MEXICO

see Mexico, led by a very determined-looking female who
had organized them into a sort of women's travel club. All
of them wanted to see the President. I overheard one lady
remark, " Say, if that President objects to seeing us ladies,
well, there's going to be trouble, that's all." The President
must have considered it unsafe to refuse, for he received
them all at the palace the next day. Hero as well as
statesman, I say; for a man brave enough to face fifty
determined women, mostly widows, is surely well fitted
to rule a nation !

One afternoon a young woman belonging to this party
entered the hotel writing-room in which I was sitting; a
giddy-looking girl with light, fluffy hair, and rather over-
dressed. She seemed to be quite excited. "Oh, say,"
she remarked to one of the older women of somewhat
prim and old-maidish appearance, "I had such a funny
experience on San Francisco Street just now. A young
Mexican with big black eyes followed me and another girl.
He was one of them Mexican dudes — lagerteegys they call
'em. He kept a-saying all sorts of things like 'hermosy'
and 'dulcy.' The girl I was with understood Spanish, and
she said he was a-saying ' beautiful girl/ 'lovely eyes/
'sweetness.' Say, wasn't it funny?" The elderly lady
gave a snort of contempt and disapproval. " / should just
like to see one of those lagerteegys follow me and say such
things," she retorted. The girl went off giggling, and com-
menced singing, "Oh, take me back to New York town."
A few minutes later I heard her remark to a friend out in
the patio, "Say, did you hear what she said? Why, she
said she'd like to see one of them lagerteegys follow her.
Well, I guess if a lagerteegy ever did he'd never escape."

CHAPTER XXII

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL

"GrvE me a ticket to that place, please," said an Ameri-
can tourist to the booking-clerk at the Mexican Central
Railway office. The man from the States held out a rail-
way guide in which he had marked the name of the place
to which he wished to travel; for he had serious doubts
about the correct pronunciation of it.

"You want a ticket to Guadalajara," replied the clerk,
but he pronounced it something like "Wahda-la-hara."

This beautiful city with the perplexing name has a popu-
lation of over a hundred thousand, is three hundred and
eighty miles northwest of Mexico City and is not far from
the Pacific coast. It has the distinction of being the hand-
somest, the cleanest, and most cheerful of Mexican cities ;
it is also acknowledged to be next in importance to the
capital, although Puebla has long claimed that honor.

The wonderful progress that Mexico has made within
recent years is strikingly exemplified in the case of Guada-
lajara, which, less than twenty years ago, was a sleepy, back-
ward place but little known to the outside world. The
nearest railway was then some distance away, and travellers
from the capital were obliged to make a large part of the
journey in slow, uncomfortable stage-coaches. To-day,
Guadalajara has become a busy, cosmopolitan city and an
important railway centre; while on account of its great
manufacturing industries it might be appropriately called
the Manchester of Mexico.

339

340 MEXICO

The Mexican Central Railway maintains a good service
of trains between Mexico City and Guadalajara, so that the
journey can be made in absolute comfort if not with exces-
sive speed. I left the capital at eight o'clock one evening
and reached Guadalajara at one the next afternoon, making
the journey in a comfortable Pullman car.

For most of the distance the railway traverses the great
central plateau, and the country, as seen from the train,
presented the usual vista of arid lands, dry, yellow grass
and occasional green, irrigated fields. Forming a distant
background to these typical highland scenes were the out-
lines of a range of reddish, barren mountains which some-
times assumed fantastic shapes and were evidently of vol-
canic origin. Most of the watercourses were dry, but once
or twice we crossed small streams and one winding, shallow
river of fair size. Very few towns or villages are to be
seen on the way, the majority of those along the route
being hidden among the hills a little distance from the
line. Sometimes there would be a mule-car at the way-
side stations to take travellers to some invisible town.

This part of Mexico, including the State of Jalisco, of
which Guadalajara is the capital, was originally called Nueva
Galicia by the Spanish colonists who settled there in 1530.
Most of these colonists came from Andalusia, and the pleas-
ant manners and light-hearted ways of their descendants
are still typical of sunny Spain. The women, too, have
the reputation of being the most beautiful in Mexico.
Guadalajara was founded in 1540, and was called Espiritu
Santo, but was afterwards given its present name, after
Wadal-il-harah, the Moorish capital. In this part of the
country there are many delightful towns and villages, with
fine old churches and other substantial buildings left as
mementos of Spanish domination.

Guadalajara certainly merits its reputation of being the

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 341

most beautiful city in Mexico. It is a bright, clean town
with wide asphalted streets and handsome white stone build-
ings, which, in the principal thoroughfares, are mostly hi
the modern Spanish style. Looking down the broad streets,
one sees a distant vista of mountains ; for Guadalajara lies
in the midst of a plain with mountains rising around it.
The streets run at right angles, intersecting a number of
parks and plazas filled with shady tropical trees and re-
splendent with flowers. If there are any slum streets in
the city, they are very carefully concealed. I saw none.
The peons whom I encountered in the highways and by-
ways also seemed to partake of the general cleanliness of the
place; they looked much more intelligent than any I had
seen before.

Not only is Guadalajara a beautiful city, but it is a busy
commercial place. In the principal streets there are good
shops of all kinds, numerous banks and commercial agen-
cies, and other outward signs of wealth and prosperity.

PYom its appearance no one would imagine Guadalajara
to be an important manufacturing place; there are no
huge chimneys belching forth black smoke such as are seen
in our manufacturing towns. The fact is that all the
machinery in the local factories is driven by the same
electrical power which lights the streets and runs the street
cars, this power being generated by the great falls of the
Lerma River a few miles distant. Here, again, is evidence
of the wonderful progress that is being made in Mexico
in the utilization of water-power.

In addition to ah1 these advantages, Guadalajara is blessed
with one of the finest climates in the world. Like Cuautla
and some other favored places, it is situated at an altitude
of five thousand feet, which gives it an average temperature
of about seventy degrees the year round — a perennial
June. During the winter months the city has probably

342 MEXICO

the driest air on the American continent, which, with its
balmy climate, makes it a favored resort for invalids suffer-
ing from bronchial or lung affections. The early mornings
and late evenings are never cold, as in the higher altitudes,
but occasionally a light overcoat can be worn with comfort.

As in most Mexican cities, the life of Guadalajara centres
about its main plaza, which is famed for its beauty, its palms,
orange trees, and tropical flowers being forever green.
Beneath the portales, which border two of its sides, are a
number of fine shops and cafes, and also facing it is the
Governor's Palace, a magnificent building of white stone
which would command attention in any European capital.
All over the city there are imposing old churches dating from
early Spanish times, tinted in beautiful soft colors and hav-
ing wonderful towers and domes. Adjoining the plaza is
the cathedral, a beautiful edifice commenced in 1561 and
completed in 1618, with two tall Gothic towers, wholly
unlike any others in Mexico, which can be seen from a long
distance. The interior is rich in decorations and paintings,
and in the sacristy is preserved Murillo's "Assumption,"
for which $75,000 has been refused.

This picture is one of the twenty-seven versions of the
theme painted by Murillo. When Napoleon invaded
Spain, the clergy of Guadalajara, in testimony of patriotic
devotion, sent King Carlos the Fourth a large sum of money
to aid in the defence of the country. In recognition of this
the king presented the cathedral with Murillo's master-
piece from his collection in the Escurial. When the French
were in Mexico in 1864, and captured Guadalajara during
Maximilian's short reign, they endeavored to seize the paint-
ing as a trophy for the Louvre, but it was concealed, and
even an offer of $25,000 did not lead to a revelation of its
hiding-place.

In one of the buildings overlooking the main plaza is

< £

51

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 343

the American Club, where visiting Americans and English-
men are welcomed. There are quite a number of Americans
in the city ; they have started several churches and a school,
and there is an enterprising weekly newspaper, the Jalisco
Times. The well-to-do Americans have established them-
selves in a beautiful quarter where the wide streets are lined
with shady trees and the houses are embowered hi tropical
foliage. This district, which is rapidly assuming an Ameri-
canized appearance, is popularly known as the American
Colony.

On several evenings during the week a fine military
band plays in the main plaza, and it is now the fashion for
the elite of the city to ride round and round while the con-
cert is in progress, the promenading, which was formerly
in vogue, having been practically discontinued. Even in
these prosaic days a wonderfully picturesque sight is pre-
sented when the band is playing. The music, the balmy
tropical evening, the plaza illuminated with its many
electric lights, the palms, flowers and orange trees, the
peons in their red sarapes and sombreros, the lines of car-
riages passing round, filled with dark-eyed beauties daintily
attired as in summer-time, — all, under a clear sky, dazzling
stars and a glorious moon, combine to make a scene of en-
chantment.

There is, in fact, a good deal of life in Guadalajara, and
the atmosphere of the place is far more cheerful than that
of Mexico City. The climate, too, is much more favorable
for outdoor life; and you can sit outside a cafe* enjoying
your refresco while listening to the music in the plaza with-
out having the chilly sensation and dread of pneumonia
that are too often experienced in the capital.

Guadalajara has five theatres, one of them, the Degollado,
being the largest on the American continent, excepting,
perhaps, the Metropolitan Opera House in New York. It is

344 MEXICO

a handsome building much larger and finer externally than
any theatre in the United States. In the city there are
twenty-eight hotels and twenty-five public baths, and
when it is remembered that Guadalajara did not have a
railway to it seventeen years ago, these statistics are inter-
esting.

The day after my arrival the city was en fete, celebrating
one of the numerous Mexican public holidays. The busi-
ness buildings were gayly decorated with the national colors
of red, white and green, there was a civic and military
procession and the streets resounded with the strains of
music. Itinerant vendors of all kinds had gathered round
the plaza, giving the place quite a festive appearance.
The streets were thronged with sight-seers, and the smart
American electric cars which run through the city and out
to the suburbs were crowded with passengers.

In the midst of this holiday-making a large party of
Mystic Shriners arrived from Mexico City and found
quarters at one of the large hotels. They were given a
luncheon by their compatriots residing in the city, and while
this was in progress, some good music was furnished by one
of the local military bands. In honor of their American
visitors, the Mexican musicians played a selection of Amer-
ican national airs, such as the Star-Spangled Banner, Hail
Columbia, and Yankee Doodle. Most of the Shriners had
a very limited knowledge of Spanish, and at the conclusion
of this complimentary pot-pourri some of them shouted
such appreciative American phrases as "Good, good;
bully for the Mexicans," while several enthusiasts yelled
" Adios, adios " (good-by), evidently thinking that the word
was synonymous with "Bravo." The bandsmen naturally
understood it to mean that the Americans wanted them to
go, having had enough of their music, so they commenced
to pack up their instruments preparatory to marching off.

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 345

It was only when the High Imperial Potentate himself
hurried to the bandmaster and explained matters with the
aid of an interpreter that the irate musicians were pacified
and smilingly resumed their playing.

The Shriners were afterwards given a reception at the
American Club, all the members and their wives being pres-
ent to meet the visitors and the ladies of their party. It
was there that I had an opportunity of meeting the " Imp.
Pot.," who, throwing off his imperial dignity for the time
being, was very convivial, told funny stories in the smoking-
room, and indeed was quite the life of the party.

Leaving the club later on to return to my hotel, I strolled
across the plaza, with its throngs of fashionably dressed
people, and went along one of the quieter streets. Here
I witnessed a scene which furnished a delightful contrast to
the rush of prosaic modern progress which is rapidly trans-
forming the ancient City of Guadalajara, A drowsy peon
and his boy were slowly driving a large flock of turkeys along
the street, keeping them in motion with the aid of long
sticks with which they occasionally prodded the birds.
This is one of the olden customs of Guadalajara which still
survives, in spite of the city's wonderful up-to-dateness.
Instead of going to a poultry shop, the housekeepers
of Guadalajara buy their turkeys from these vendors as
they pass through the streets. Sometimes the purchaser
has the bird despatched on the spot, but, in most cases,
the turkey is kept for a week and fattened until it is in
prime condition for the highly seasoned stew into which
it is made.

During my stay in the city I paid a visit to the Hospicio,
one of Guadalajara's public institutions which is unique in
its way. Instead of being a hospital, as its name would in-
dicate, it is an asylum for the poor of all ages. It is a series
of great stone buildings covering an entire square, contains

346 MEXICO

twenty-three patios with fountains and flowers, and shelters
a strange assortment of humanity, — aged men and women,
boys and girls and even babies. The inmates all looked
well-fed and cheerful, everything was scrupulously clean
and the appointments of the place would have done credit
to any American institution. The children in the Hospicio
are given a good education, and when they grow older are
taught some useful occupation. In one of the departments
which I visited, the girls, mostly Indians, were making some
beautiful embroideries.

Electric traction, which has done so much in developing
the suburbs of some American towns, is having the same
effect on the growth of Guadalajara, the laying of suburban
street-railway lines having caused the city to extend in
every direction. There are few rides in the world which in
point of picturesqueness can equal those about Guadala-
jara; the swift-moving cars, passing through fields of trop-
ical vegetation and between hedges of cactus and palms,
reach the plain from which there are superb views of the
lofty mountains and distant glimpses of the beautiful
white city.

In the village of San Pedro, to which the cars run, many
of the wealthy citizens of Guadalajara have their country
houses, and some of these are very charming. The famous
Guadalajara ware comes from the potteries in this village,
which turn out all sorts of water- jars and bottles in various
beautiful shapes. They also make little figures represent-
ing almost every phase of Mexican life, such as water-
carriers, cargadores, mule-drivers, vaqueros or cowboys,
colored most cleverly and wonderfully modelled. An in-
teresting collection of these can be bought for a few dollars.
San Pedro is the home of two Indian sculptors, the Pan-
duros, father and son, and at their studio a visitor who
wishes to carry away a souvenir of Guadalajara can have

THE OLD AND NEW.

Street-car lines and electric-light posts are here shown in one of the old streets
of Guadalajara.

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 347

his bust or statuette modelled in clay while he waits. These
statuettes are wonderfully lifelike and are colored with
great accuracy.

One morning I went out to see the most wonderful of
Guadalajara's local sights, a deep gorge called the barranca,
about six miles from the city. This, at some points, has
a depth of nearly three thousand feet, and as climate in
Mexico depends entirely upon altitude, this freak of nature
enables Guadalajara, situated in the temperate zone, to
have the climate and fruits of the tropics only six miles
away, large quantities of bananas, cocoanuts and other
hot-land fruits being grown in the depths of the barranca.
In the higher lands adjacent to the city the fruits and vege-
tables of temperate lands are grown the year round, so that
the people of Guadalajara are provided with a bountiful
supply of good things for the table.

A small tram-car drawn by two sturdy mules took me
to the beginning of the barranca, the line ending at the
edge of this great chasm, where the scenery is magnificent,
somewhat resembling that of the Grand Canon of Arizona
— a series of great castellated rocks, frowning precipices
and deep abysses. Mounting a horse, I rode for miles down
a winding road to the depths of the rocky gorge, experi-
encing a wonderful change of climate. At the top of the
barranca the air was fresh and balmy ; at the bottom of this
natural hot-house the heat was tropical in its intensity.
The ride, however, was delightful, my rocky path bordering
the narrow Lerma River which flows through the depths
of the barranca, dashing over the rocks amidst the tropical
verdure of banana plants, orange trees and cocoanut palms ;
on either side the towering walls of the gorge rear them-
selves in perpendicular cliffs.

From Guadalajara the Mexican Central Railway has been
extended westward between one hundred and fifty and

348 MEXICO

two hundred miles to Manzanillo, an important port on the
Pacific coast. With the completion of this line Guadala-
jara will now become still more important as a commercial
centre, as the new ports of the Pacific coast will give access
to the trade of the interior. The line opens up a vast
mining region, rich in gold, silver, copper and lead. It
runs through a fertile, picturesque country of high moun-
tains, small lakes, rolling hills and broad valleys. The
only active volcano in North America is a few miles from
the line, — Colima, twelve thousand feet high, — twice as
high as Vesuvius and higher than Mount Etna. From
Manzanillo steamers run regularly to San Francisco and
other American ports as well as to ports in southern Mexico.
Thousands of cattle are raised on the plains west of Guada-
lajara, and in the hot lands along the coast all kinds of
tropical fruits are grown. In the State of Colima, through
which the railway passes, there are a large number of coffee
plantations.

The State of Jalisco, in which Guadalajara is situated,
is one of the most important in the Mexican union in point
of population, and it is also one of the richest. It is a won-
derfully fertile country, and having an abundance of running
streams, irrigation is carried on extensively ; it is also well
wooded, some of the mountain ranges being covered with
forests of timber suitable for all purposes. While manu-
facturing, agriculture and cattle-raising have hitherto been
the main industries of Jalisco, mining now bids fair to take
a foremost place. In recent years some rich mines of copper
and other minerals have been developed in the western part
of the State, on the route of the new railway extension.

Many of the members of the American Club whom I
met in Guadalajara were engaged in mining in the moun-
tains west of the city, and were enthusiastic concerning the
mineral-producing possibilities of the country. The future

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 349

development of these great states of Jalisco and Colima
offer wonderful opportunities for the investment of capital,
and undoubtedly this part of Mexico is destined to be one
of the richest countries on the face of the earth.

Mining developments in the neighborhood of Guadala-
jara have brought there the usual number of "men with
schemes." Strolling round the plaza one evening, I noticed
some Americans of the Western "schemer" type seated to-
gether talking very excitedly. As I passed them, I caught
such remarks as " The biggest - - thing in Mexico ; mil-
lions in it." One of the prospective millionaires produced
the usual piece of ore from his pocket and I heard him say,
"Well, gentlemen, I've got the golderndest richest propo-
sition here that you ever heard of. This little chunk of
metal came from over Colima way and — wal, there's just
simply millions in the little hole it came out of." I waited
to hear no more, but fled. Was I never to escape from these
men of millions ?

What the men of schemes probably did not know is the
astounding fact that some of the streets of Guadalajara
are actually paved with gold. A few years ago, when the
asphalt company repaved the city streets, the asphaltum
was mixed with tailings from the old Spanish and Mexican
reduction works in the Etzatlan district of Jalisco. After
the paving had been done, the company's manager, out of
curiosity, had a number of assays made of the old tailings.
To his surprise, these assays revealed the fact that the
tailings contained about fifteen dollars7 worth of gold and
silver in each ton. About four hundred tons of tailings
were used in paving, so the net amount of gold and silver
laid in the streets represented over $6000.

On leaving Guadalajara, I took the train to Atequiza, a
village about forty miles from the city, the nearest station to
Lake Chapala, where I had arranged to spend a week-end.

350

There are few important rivers and lakes in Mexico, but
two of the latter, Chapala and Patzcuaro, are famous for
their great size and beauty. Chapala is becoming a popular
resort for visitors from all parts of Mexico. From Ate-
quiza an old-fashioned stage-coach drawn by eight mules
takes travellers to the village of Chapala on the shores of
the lake.

Between Atequiza and Guadalajara there is a large
hacienda through which the railway runs for several miles,
and being so close to the city, this property has become
extremely valuable. It employs an army of peons, and on
its farms are grown all kinds of fruits and vegetables.
There are broad fields of grain and large grazing grounds
for herds of sheep and cattle. The stage-coach runs through
one of the hacienda villages, with its church, schoolhouse,
several modern mills, ancient granaries, massive dwellings
and adobe huts.

The road from Atequiza to Chapala, like most Mexican
country roads, is not macadamized, but is full of rocks and
ruts which toss the old coaches about like ships in a stormy
sea. Lucky are those passengers who get outside seats,
for those who ride inside are almost choked with dust
before the journey is over. Recently some steps have
been taken to improve the public highway from Guadala-
jara to Chapala, and although the road would stagger most
American motorists, several cars come over it every week
from the city to the lake.

I sat beside the stage-coach driver, and was very much
amused at the way in which he kept his eight animals on
the move with constant cracks of his long whip and frequent
trilling a-r-r-es, which he would vary with shouts of "mula,
macho " — mula being the female, and macho the male,
mule. How they ever managed to drag the great lumber-
ing stage-coach, with its load of passengers and luggage,

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 351

I could not understand. A German mechanical engineer
who was my fellow-passenger, remarked to me, "This coach
is typical of old Mexico. They use it simply because their
forefathers used a coach of this kind. It's a big load in
itself without any extra weight. A light American coach
would get over the ground in half the time and stand the
wear and tear just as well; but these fellows wouldn't
think of using one because ' no es costumbre/ it isn't the cus-
tom." The only redeeming trait that I could see about the
old vehicle was that it was picturesque. It was unwieldy
and uncomfortable, being hung upon leather bands instead
of steel springs, and jolting so much that the unfortunate
passengers inside had to be strapped in their seats to keep
them in their places.

So we swayed and jolted over the rough road, bordered
with low stone walls dividing the cultivated fields from the
highway, winding up and down hill amongst rocky moun-
tains until, in the distance, we saw the glistening waters of
Chapala melting away to the horizon; by the side of the
lake was nestling the village of Chapala, set in a little oasis
of green verdure, and towering above the housetops were
the two beautiful spires of the parish church. A few miles
more and we clattered down the main street, over the
rough cobble-stones, to the door of the hotel.

There are three hotels at Chapala, all very much alike.
I found quarters at the Arzapalo, a rambling stone building
of two stories, a few feet from the lake and commanding
some beautiful views. Although somewhat crude in a few
minor particulars, the place was comfortable and, for a
Mexican hotel at least, unusually well managed.

Very few Americans have ever heard of Lake Chapala,
although it is one of the largest lakes in the world. It
is seventy miles long, east and west, and twenty miles across
at some points, covering a superficial area of a thousand

352 MEXICO

square miles. It has an altitude of about five thousand
feet and is surrounded by mountains, some of which are over
ten thousand feet. They are covered with scrubby trees
and vegetation of various hues that add much to the beauty
of the scenery.

All along the shores of the lake, and in the Lerma River
which runs into it, hundreds of peons are employed in
gathering and burning yellow water-lily which has invaded
the waters. A few years ago some imbecile planted a
quantity of the lily in the river, thinking it would look
pretty. In an incredibly short time it spread like wildfire ;
some of the streams were completely choked with it, and
when I visited Chapala the river was covered in places
with green masses of the plant. It had spread all along the
lake when the Mexican government took the matter in
hand and appropriated a large sum of money for its destruc-
tion. At night, fires can be seen blazing along the shores
of the lake where the peons have collected and are burning
large piles of the noxious weed.

The village of Chapala is built on the northern shore of
the lake, where a sloping, sandy beach makes a capital
bathing place. The narrow streets centre at a tiny plaza
adorned with orange trees and other tropical vegetation.
Here on Sundays the market is held, and picturesque natives
from the surrounding country pour into the little town and
gather there. A number of pretty villas are dotted along
the lake's side, embowered in bougainvillea and hibiscus,
palms and orange trees. On a hill a short distance from
the shore some land has been divided into building lots
for villas, with the idea of starting a model American sum-
mer village ; but the price of the ground is so high — about
$1000 per lot — that very few purchasers had been found.

A rude pier of rough stones extends into the water, and
here one can embark in a rowing or sailing boat or a naphtha

GUADALAJARA THE WONDERFUL 353

launch and take trips up and down the lake. There are
one or two old-fashioned steamers on it, but they do not
make regular runs and have to be chartered for special
trips. There are also a number of small fishing schooners.
The little village, with its big white church and mountain-
ous background, bears a wonderful resemblance to some
of the lake villages in northern Italy, and makes a most
beautiful picture. This little bit of the lake might be taken
for a scene on Como ; but the waters of Chapala are slightly
yellowish instead of blue. The lake, too, is very shallow,
and for this reason the government has prohibited its waters
being used for irrigation.

In the lake there are some small white fish (pescados
blancos) which are caught with nets, but there is nothing
to tempt the angler. The Mexican government is now
stocking the waters with trout, bass, perch and other game
fish, which may eventually make the lake more attractive
to lovers of the rod and reel; but the Indians along the
shore are such inveterate netters that it will be very diffi-
cult to breed the fish.

For the sportsman Chapala is far more attractive. Lying
along some parts of the lake are extensive flats that are
overflowed at high water. During the winter months these
swamps are favorite resorts for myriads of feathered visitors
from the north, ducks of all kinds and sizes, snipe, plover,
geese, swans, and in fact all varieties of birds that like
muddy creeks and shallow waters here congregate and
fatten. While I was in Chapala a retired English naval
officer, who had been cruising about the lake, brought in
thirty geese one evening, the result of only one day's shoot-
ing. He said that Chapala afforded the finest wild-fowl
shooting that he had ever enjoyed in his travels.

Chapala is beautiful at all times, but is particularly
charming as the day wanes; in fact, it is famous for its

2A

354 MEXICO

sunsets. The great expanse of waters with its mountainous
background then becomes a thing of wondrous beauty.
As night falls a stiff breeze generally springs up, which makes
the air very fresh and invigorating. Then the waters of
the lake dash on the shore and break over the pier in marked
contrast to their placid appearance in the daytime.

A short distance along the shore, within sight of the beau-
tiful electric-lighted villas, there is another of those queer
contrasts so often met with in Mexico. Here is a little
village of Indian fishermen who live in huts or wigwams
of rushes and adobe, some of the fishing houses being built
on piles in the lake like those of the prehistoric lake-dwellers
in Switzerland. These Indians are the descendants of the
fierce Chapaltecos, one of the last tribes subdued by the
Spaniards. At sunset these wild-looking creatures, in
very scanty raiment, can be seen casting their nets in the
lake and catching the small white fish, which they sell in
the neighborhood. To visit this place when the sun is
setting, and see the weird figures flitting about beneath
the semitropical foliage, conversing in low tones in their
ancient dialect, living the most primitive of lives, makes
it almost impossible to realize that hardly a mile away
are comfortable hotels, newspapers, the telegraph, the
telephone, a railway, Pullman cars and other adjuncts of
latter-day civilization.

3 5
o I

a I

CHAPTER XXIII

FROM the days of the Spanish Conquest, Mexico has taken
the lead as a silver-producing country; it is preeminently
the land of silver, and it has furnished fully one-third of the
world's supply of this precious metal. Silver is found al-
most everywhere in the country, but the richest mines are
those in the vicinity of the ancient city of Guanajuato.
From these wonderful mines came a large part of the treas-
ure which helped to build up the great Spanish empire;
and much of the glittering white metal was coined into those
huge pieces of eight which figure so prominently in pirate
stories. It is to its great mining industry that Guanajuato
owes its existence and its prosperity, and to-day it is popu-
larly known as "the silver city."

It was to this interesting place that I set out on leaving
Lake Chapala. Jolting back to Atequiza in the old stage-
coach one morning, I took the train southward 136 miles
to the junction of Iripuato, which I reached late in the
afternoon. Iripuato, a pretty little town with a population
of twenty thousand, is situated in the midst of a rich farm-
ing country, wheat, maize, fruit, vegetables and various
other products of the temperate zone being grown on the
haciendas. To Mexicans the name of Iripuato is synony-
mous with strawberries, as that delicious fruit is grown there
all the year round and sold every day in the year. Swarms
of peons with large basketfuls of luscious berries surround
the trains when they arrive, offering their wares for sale.

355

356 MEXICO

On changing at Iripuato, a train of the Mexican National
Railway took me to Silao in about an hour, where there was
a change to another train and a ride of about half an hour
to Marfil. It was late in the evening when I left the train
there. A cargador piloted me to the outside of the station,
where there were three little street-cars, one first-class and
two second-class, each drawn by two mules. The first-
class car was already packed with passengers, and I had to
stand on the rear platform, which was also crowded. We
started off at a good pace, rattling down an unlighted
country road. Occasionally, in the semi-darkness, I could
catch a glimpse of rolling hills on each side of the road,
quaint stone bridges over a rushing stream, and square,
massive stone buildings which a fellow-passenger informed
me were silver-reduction works.

Although Guanajuato has a population of over forty
thousand, and is an important city, the railway when I
arrived there was still three miles distant, and this little
street-car was the only means of getting passengers and their
baggage into the place. A large force of men were at work,
however, extending the line into the city, where a station
was being built.

The unlighted, dusty road eventually gave place to the
narrow, cobble-paved, electric-lighted streets of the city.
Along the way were houses and business buildings of the
usual Mexican type, built of stone or stucco, with barred
windows, balconies and flat roofs, but looking much more
dingy and ancient than any I had yet seen. The streets
were thronged with blanketed natives, and there seemed
to be an unusually large number of street vendors squat-
ting beside their little stalls, selling fruit, dulces and other
articles. At first sight Guanajuato seemed to be a typical
city of the past. Unlike Guadalajara, there were no smart
modern buildings in the principal streets, no swift-moving

"THE SILVER CITY" 357

electric cars, no asphalt paving ; and the whole place seemed
to be enveloped in a drowsy, old-world atmosphere.

I went to an American hotel, which was the usual old
Spanish mansion slightly transformed. In its palmy days
it must have been quite a palatial residence, this rambling
old building, with all sorts of queer corridors and a large
central patio where there was a moss-covered fountain and
bright flowers. It was quaint and rather crude in its ap-
pointments, but comfortable enough, and the meals were
well cooked and served.

Guanajuato is two hundred and fifty miles from Mexico
City, and is the capital of the State of the same name. It
has an altitude of nearly seven thousand feet, so that its
climate is not so uniform as that of Guadalajara, the days
being usually warmer, while the nights and mornings are
much colder. Built in a deep, narrow valley or gulch be-
tween the mountains, the situation of the city bears some
resemblance to that of the lower town of Carlsbad; but
the surrounding mountains, unlike those at Carlsbad, are
sun-baked, treeless and overgrown with cactus.

The city derives its name from the word " Quanashuato,"
meaning the Hill of the Frogs, which was given to it by the
Tarascan Indians, whose descendants still inhabit this part
of Mexico. After the Conquest, the Spaniards altered it
to Guanajuato (pronounced Wah-nah-wahto). There is no
extant tradition throwing any light on why this place was
called the Hill of the Frogs, unless it was so named in honor
of some Indian deity. This theory has gained some sup-
port from the fact that a huge frog cut in stone was found
during some excavations in the city a few years ago. Silver
mining, the industry for which Guanajuato is famous, was
commenced by the Spaniards in 1548, and the first settle-
ment was started in 1557.

Owing to the peculiar situation of the city, very few of

358 MEXICO

the streets are level. Craggy mountains rise above the
housetops, and the side streets run up hill, oftentimes hav-
ing cobble-stone steps. Perched on the hillsides that rise
almost perpendicularly above the city are huts of adobe
and low, flat-roofed, stucco houses, tinted pale blue, cream
and pink, in such out-of-the-way spots that you wonder how
even a goat could ever reach them. The whole place, with
its houses of antique mould, has an appearance that
strongly reminds one of some city in the East, in Egypt or
the Holy Land. Guanajuato is admitted by travellers to
be one of the most picturesque cities in the world, and
it is unlike any other in Mexico. Many of its streets
are irregular, precipitous, rock-paved paths upon which
wheeled vehicles are seldom seen, and down whose steep
inclines half-dressed, picturesque men, women and children
of the peon class contest the right of way with dashing
horsemen and droves of patient burros.

A stone's throw from the hotel and right in the centre
of the city is the principal plaza, the Jardin de la Union, a
pretty square with shady trees and ever blooming flowers.
Here, three or four times a week, good music is played by
the local regimental band. Here, too, are some good shops,
one or two fine old churches and a magnificent theatre
(el Teatro Juarez) which would be a credit to London or
Paris. This beautiful structure of pale green stone and
marble, with a grand portico surmounted with statues, took
twenty years to build and cost over a million dollars. Its
internal decorations are magnificent, being unsurpassed by
those in any other theatre of its class in North America.
Near the plaza is the Mint, the Governor's Palace, and other
fine public buildings. Some of the old churches have elab-
orately carved fronts, and the cathedral, a beautiful struc-
ture in early Spanish style, has a fine chime of bells, a
rarity in Mexico.

"THE SILVER CITY" 359

One of the most interesting old buildings in the city is
the Alhondiga or Castilla de Granaditas, erected in 1785
as a chamber of commerce and now used as a prison.
When the first War of Independence broke out in 1810,
the followers of the Mexican patriot priest, Hidalgo, forced
their way into the city, and after a fierce battle captured
the Spanish garrison, which had taken refuge in the Alhon-
diga. While the attack was in progress, Hidalgo called
for a volunteer to go under the walls and set fire to the
massive doors. A stalwart peon came forward, and with
a large flat stone on his back as a shield against the Span-
iard's shots, rushed in, torch in hand, and burned down
the doors, giving admittance to Hidalgo and his followers.
Breaking into the patio, the patriots met the Spaniards
there and drove them up the grand staircase to the roof,
where they surrendered. There are stains still shown
which are said to be those of blood spilt in this fight. In
one of the halls there is a statue of the Indian hero with
the stone on his shoulders and the torch uplifted. After
the suppression of the revolt, Hidalgo and his lieutenants,
Allende, Aldama and Jimenez, were executed at Chihuahua,
when then: heads were brought to Guanajuato and hung
on hooks outside the walls of the Alhondiga. These hooks
are still to be seen outside the old building.

From the plaza the narrow streets wind up hill, revealing
many artistic "bits" that recall scenes in one of the old
cities in southern Italy. As I strolled hi this direction
early in the morning, there came down the cobble-paved
highway a constant procession of barefooted Indians from
the country, and clattering burros loaded with all sorts
of merchandise — a wonderful picture of movement and
color.

At the plaza I afterwards took a mule tram-car up the
steep, winding street to the extreme end of the city,

360 MEXICO

there is a beautiful little park called the Presa de la Olla,
in the middle of which are some large reservoirs supplying
the city with water. In this district there are some charm-
ing houses, and here is situated the foreign colony, where a
number of well-to-do Americans and some English, French
and Germans have established their homes.

I must award Guanajuato the palm for having one of the
prettiest parks in Mexico. The Presa de la Olla is sur-
rounded with bare, towering mountains of pinkish hue, along
the steep sides of which narrow trails run out into the
country. Through the centre of the park, which abounds
in green, well-kept lawns, runs a stream which comes down
from the upper hills, falling from one reservoir into another
and forming little lakelets crossed by bridges. The walls
of the reservoirs and the bridges are covered with vines and
flowers, while the surrounding houses are completely em-
bowered in them. Altogether it is one of the most beautiful
spots in all Mexico. From this end of the town, which is
perched on the top of a hill, there is a splendid view of the
city, with its quaint churches, narrow streets and the queer
houses on the hillsides.

Returning to the other end of the town, I visited another
of the sights of Guanajuato, a most grewsome one. This
is an underground catacomb, such as is found in some
parts of the Old World, which is situated in the Panteon or
municipal cemetery on the outskirts of the town. Under
a broiling sun I climbed up a steep hill in the afternoon and
reached this burial-ground, a small square surrounded
with a high stone wall. In the middle were a few humble
graves with simple headstones, and some fine monuments.
On two sides, built in the walls, were rows of vaults under
porticos, the compartments for bodies rising in tiers. Ac-
cording to Mexican burial customs, graves or vaults are
leased, a certain stipulated sum being paid for the first five

"THE SILVER CITY" 361

years with the privilege of renewal. If at the end of that
time the mourners' grief has cooled and further payment
is not made, the remains are taken from the vault or grave.
If only bones remain, they are thrown into a heap at the
end of an arch under the pavement. Sometimes, however,
a body is preserved and mummified by the peculiar soil and
the dry air of the climate. In that case it is wrapped in
a shroud and placed standing in a vault with similar
mummies.

The gate-keeper of the Panteon acted as my guide and
revealed to me the horrors of this underground charnel-
house. Lifting up a flagstone in the pavement, he disclosed
a flight of stone steps by which we descended to a large
underground vault, lighted by some windows somewhere
above. In one corner of the vault was an enormous pile
of skulls and bones, and the stench was almost overpower-
ing. At the end of the vault was a glass door. I looked
through this and saw about forty mummies standing on
their feet, wrapped in white shrouds. They were, until
recently, left naked, but the authorities have now had them
draped in this manner. In two or three instances the cloth-
ing in which the bodies had been buried was preserved.
These awful relics of humanity were standing in all kinds
of attitudes, and their distorted features presented various
grotesque expressions: the laughing lady, the weeping
lady and the toothless old coquette with ghastly leer from
under her thin gray hair. A scraggy gentleman with black
beard and hair leaned against the wall, meditating on the
vanity of flesh, while a young woman with composedly
folded hands stood in what Delsarte would have called the
attitude of subjective reflection with a half -suppressed
yawn. It was a horrible and ghastly sight. It seemed
such a terrible desecration to disinter the poor dead and
to make them a cheap exhibition for tourists.

362 MEXICO

One of the ghastly company was dressed as a vaquero in
full riding-dress of ancient pattern. I afterwards observed
to an American acquaintance that this mummy in life might
have been a cavalier of old Spain in pre-republican days.
" Pre-republican nothing/7 he retorted. "Why, that's the
mummy of old man Smith, the saloon-keeper who got killed
in a fight a few years ago. His widow is still doing business
at the old stand.' ' It is thus that our prosaic countrymen
destroy romance. I was glad to leave the evil-smelling
vault, registering a vow then and there never to enter
another catacomb.

There are many grisly stories of adventures in the house
of the dead. One is of an American from Texas who was
suspected of being in the pay of the French during Maxi-
milian's ill-fated attempt to found an empire. He was
caught and robbed by bandits near Guanajuato. His
captors then decided to punish him for being a traitor to
Mexico; and in order to bring about his death through
horrible torture, they conceived the idea of shutting him
up in the mummy vault, where, after some days, he was
discovered raving mad.

Like all Mexican cities, Guanajuato is a place of con-
trasts. On the main street there are some very fair shops
and several American agencies for such goods as type-
writers and phonographs. While you are contemplating
these evidences of progress, you hear a clatter of hoofs,
and a train of burros comes along the street driven by
swarthy Indians in their picturesque garb, bringing in fruit
and vegetables, or perhaps loads of silver ore from the
neighboring mines. But these interesting scenes will
soon have passed away; for Guanajuato before long will
have asphalted streets and electric tram-cars, while electric
trains will bring in the market commodities and carry down
the ore from the mountains.

I!

M 45

II

363

The increasing number of Americans, too, cannot fail
to have some effect on the manners and customs of the
people. I was very much amused at overhearing a con-
versation between the son of my hotel proprietor, who
acted as clerk, and another youthful American. They were
just at the age when young men devote a good deal of
thought to the fair sex, and were discussing one of their
friends who was very sweet on a Mexican girl. "Well,"
observed my young friend, the clerk, " Mexican girls will
wait a long time before they'll catch me playing bear out-
side a window. If I'm not good enough to go inside the
house, I'm not going to play the fool outside."

" That's just what I say, and I was telling Bob the same
thing," remarked the other young man. "If he plays the
bear for a girl, he ought to be ashamed of himself. That's
a thing no decent American would ever do." Evidently,
if the young ladies of Guanajuato wish to marry Americans,
they will have to modify the popular Mexican bear-playing
custom.

As in other Mexican towns, the citizens of Guanajuato
have abandoned their promenading in the plaza, which
formerly gave a touch of life to the old city after dark.
When the band played in the evening, I noticed very few
women in the plaza, and certainly none of the higher classes.
Plenty of Mexican men and a good many Americans were
to be seen there. As I strolled round one evening, I passed
a group of Americans seated together, talking rather ex-
citedly, and at once recognized them as my old friends,
"the men with schemes." " Yes," said one of the party, as

I passed, "it's the biggest proposition in the whole of

Mexico. Why, man, there's millions in it." I hurried
away to the seclusion of a quiet, dimly lighted street —
anywhere to escape from those omnipresent Western men
of schemes and visionary wealth.

364 MEXICO

But Guanajuato is par excellence the place for schemes
connected with precious metal, and to describe the
place without giving a few details of the great silver-
mining industry, which is the backbone of its prosperity,
would be like the play of Hamlet with the melancholy Dane
left out. For without the silver mines there would be no
Guanajuato.

The first important silver mining there was commenced
by the Spaniards in 1548, when the San Bernabe vein of the
famous La Luz mine was discovered. These mines, however,
had been worked by the Aztecs long before the Spaniards
came. The fame of Guanajuato as a silver-mining region
grew apace after the first operations of the Spaniards;
other mines were discovered, and from 1548 to the present
time it is said that fully 1,500,000,000 dollars' worth of sil-
ver has been produced there. It is undoubtedly the rich-
est mineralized district in the whole of Mexico.

In the old Spanish times the wealthy mine-owners lived
like princes, spending their money lavishly. Fortunes
were constantly made and lost. Early in the last century
two mines alone, in the La Luz district, yielded about four
million ounces of silver every year. The stories of the
Mexican silver kings of the past read more like Monte Cristo
romances than the hard facts of lives actually lived. Money
was made so fast in those days that it was impossible to
spend it except in gambling, for the refinements of luxury
on which millionaires now lavish their wealth were then
undreamed of.

A shrewd prospector in the early days, named Zambrano,
discovered a mine which brought him immense wealth.
He spent most of his time at the capitals of Europe, living
as extravagantly as possible, squandering vast sums at the
gaming table, but he managed to leave a snug little fortune
of $60,000,000. One of his whims was to lay a silver pave-

365

ment in front of his house, but this the authorities forbade.
j/ In those days, too, it must be remembered that silver was
I' on a parity with gold. The Conde de Valenciana, who
discovered one of the richest mines in Guanajuato, derived
so much wealth from it that he is said to have got rid of
$100,000,000 in a few years. Another silver king sent the
king of Spain $2,000,000 as a Christmas present, and asked
to be allowed to build galleries and portales of silver around
"his mansion. This request was refused, the Spanish au-
thorities declaring that such magnificence was the privilege
of royalty only.

The Guanajuato millionaires eventually became so wildly
extravagant that one of the viceroys prohibited their
scattering handfuls of silver coins as they rode through the
streets, because it increased the number of beggars in the
city and constituted a public nuisance ! It is said that at
the present day there is a Mexican who owns a mine of
such wonderfully rich ore that the entrance to it is guarded
by thick stone walls and steel doors. He is an inveterate
gambler and when his available funds have disappeared, he
simply hires a few miners to take out $50,000 or $100,000
worth of silver, which is very soon lost.

One of the famous Mexican mining kings of the present
day is Pedro Alvarado, an Indian, known as the peon
millionaire. A few years ago some wonderfully rich ore
was struck in the Palmillo mine that he owned, and he
became one of the wealthiest men in the world. Although
he and his wife still dress in peon clothes, he has built a
magnificent house, and being fond of music, has filled it with
musical instruments of almost every description, including
a number of costly pianos. Alvarado is very charitable
and recently distributed $2,000,000 among the poor of
Mexico. He has given away several fortunes in this man-
ner, and during the past eight years has built fifty churches

366 MEXICO

and a hundred schools. Not long ago he offered to pay off
the Mexican national debt, but altered his mind when he
found it was a little too big for even a silver king to settle.

Until recently, when foreign capital began to develop so
many of the Mexican mines, the processes of extracting
gold and silver were very slow and wasteful. To-day the
tailings of many of the old Spanish mines are being worked
over, and the precious metal extracted at a good profit.
A few years ago, some Americans discovered that the adobe
bricks used in constructing some peon huts in Guanajuato
had been made from tailings containing a large percentage
of gold and silver. They bought the huts, tore them down
and extracted the precious metals, clearing a large sum by
their enterprise.

The patio process of silver extraction, discovered by
Bartolome de Medina in 1557, is still in use in Guanajuato,
although it is being gradually supplanted by more improved
methods. In this process the ore is first crushed into
powder by great stone rollers turned by droves of mules.
It is then conveyed to a paved court by a stream of water
until the mass, which resembles thin mortar, is about two
feet deep. Into this patio mud, as it is called, quicksilver
salt and blue vitriol are thrown. A number of mules are
then driven round it for hours at a time until everything
is well mixed, several weeks being usually required to com-
plete this process. The resulting mass is next deposited in
troughs of water, where the amalgam of silver and quick-
silver sinks to the bottom, the metals being afterwards
separated by a method of distillation. By the patio process
it is asserted that not more than ten per cent of silver is lost.
Terrible suffering, however, is inflicted on the poor mules
by the action of the vitriolic liquid, which eats into their
legs and soon disables them. All along the road, from
Marfil to Guanajuato, there are large silver haciendas or

367

reduction works, to which the ore from the neighboring
mines is brought for extraction.

Next to Guanajuato, the richest silver-mining district in
Mexico, is in the neighborhood of Pachuca, eighty-four miles
from the capital. This town has a population of nearly
forty thousand, and its altitude is nearly eight thousand
feet, even higher than Mexico City. Pachuca is a very
windy place ; at times roasting hot, at others freezing cold,
so that it is not exactly a health resort. It is the only town
in Mexico where there are houses with stoves and chimneys.
In the surrounding districts there are nearly three hundred
mines. Silver ore was first discovered there by a poor
shepherd nearly four hundred years ago, since which time
the mines have been worked constantly and have yielded
fabulous sums. One of them, La Trinidad, produced nearly
fifty million dollars' worth of silver in ten years. There is a
large American population in Pachuca and a good many
Englishmen and Canadians.

The Spaniards, in the early days, worked only the richest
mines, thinking little of ore that did not yield at least a
hundred ounces to the ton. Their mining operations were
conducted in a very primitive manner. In working the
mines, they constructed great shafts down which ran lad-
ders, and peons brought up the ore in sacks on their backs.
The same method is still followed in most of the mines, the
"poor Indian" toiling up the long ladders several times
a day without a rest, carrying a leather sack on his back,
sometimes containing over two hundred pounds of ore.
In the early Spanish times thousands of Indians were
enslaved and compelled by their cruel taskmasters to work
in the mines early and late, being flogged if they refused.
When a mine was flooded, the peons cleared it by carrying
up bucketfuls of water. Several rich mines which were
abandoned in those days on account of flooding have now

368 MEXICO

been cleared out and are again in operation. Improved
extracting processes and transportation are also making
many old mines profitable. The trains of burros still bring
down ore from the mines, but are being gradually sup-
planted by tramways.

The Spaniards, in describing the wealth of the Aztec
land, did not mention the silver, but spoke much of the gold,
of which all the ornaments of the chiefs were made. It is
narrated that Montezuma gave presents of gold ornaments
to Cortes to the value of more than seven million dollars.
Where these great quantities of gold came from has never
been discovered ; for while gold in paying amounts is found
in many places combined with silver and other minerals, still
the quantity mined has ever proved very small in com-
parison with the value of the silver. It is believed that
many of the Indians know where gold exists in enormous
quantities in Mexico, the traditions having been handed
down from their forefathers; but for some unaccountable
reason they keep the whereabouts of these deposits a pro-
found secret.

In the land of the Tlapanecos there is said to be a gold
deposit of fabulous richness, tradition relating that the
Indians paid tribute to their Spanish conquerors in gold
nuggets. All attempts to discover the source of this gold
supply have been in vain. It is related that the Indians
once agreed to take a Spanish priest to the place on con-
dition that he made the journey blindfolded. The wily
old padre consented to this, but before starting tied a small
bag of Indian com to his belt under his cloak, and after
every few steps of his horse dropped a grain to the ground,
with the object of marking the way. After travelling some
distance, the bandage was taken from the priest's eyes and
he was allowed to look around, when he beheld tons of quartz
glistening with rich yellow gold. As he stood spellbound,

"THE SILVER CITY11 369

contemplating the vast wealth that was soon to be his, an
Indian stepped up and handed him a bag, saying : " Padre,
you lost your corn on the way; but here it is, every grain. "
Thus he was never able to find his way back to this wonder-
ful region, and the cunning Spaniards were again outwitted
by the simple natives.

With the introduction of railways, improved machinery
and extracting processes, large quantities of low-grade ores
are now being profitably worked in Mexico. Smelters and
works for the cyanide process are being started in all the
important mining districts, and at the present time the
mining industry gives employment to nearly two hundred
thousand men. Wages are still very low, the native miners
rarely earning more than fifty cents a day, while common
labor is paid only half that amount. In the production
of silver, Mexico is unsurpassed by any other country, the
annual output of the mines ranging from thirty to forty
million dollars. As a gold-producing country it now holds
the fifth place, the total output for 1908 having been
valued at over $18,000,000.

Among the other valuable minerals found in Mexico are
copper, iron, lead and graphite. There are a number of rich
copper mines in the country, and the total production for
1908 was about 70,000 tons. There are some important
iron deposits in northern Mexico, especially in the vicinity
of Durango and Monterey. Lead exists in great quantities,
and most of the graphite used in the United States comes
from Mexico. An abundant supply of petroleum is being
obtained in Tehuantepec and Tampico. Coal has been
found, but only in small quantities, most of that used in
Mexico being brought from England and the United States.
In some of the mining districts it costs fifteen dollars per
ton, and its high price has been a serious obstacle to the
introduction of modern machinery requiring steam power.

2B

CHAPTER XXIV

THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN

THE charm of Mexico is the variety of its scenery —
the majestic snow-capped mountains ; the rolling prairies ;
tropical forests jewelled with gorgeous orchids amidst
which flutter spangled blue butterflies; rivers embowered
in the densest shade; fields yellowing to harvest; and the
steaming, miasmic marsh lands waving with green sugar-
cane. You can see all these facets of the earth's beauty
in a journey of twenty-four hours.

Mexico can even rival the picturesqueness of Switzer-
land and the Italian lakes. For at Lake Patzcuaro one has
scenery which is not surpassed by that of Interlaken or
Como. This lake is certainly one of the most beautiful
in the world.

A railway journey of a few hours took me from Guana-
juato to the little town of Patzcuaro on the borders of the
lake, which is one of the most picturesque places in all
Mexico. The town is about three miles from the station,
and travellers journey thither in an old-fashioned stage-
coach similar to that which runs between Atequiza and
Chapala. I found it a dusty, jolting ride, but Patzcuaro
proved a sufficient recompense for all the discomforts ex-
perienced in getting there. It is a wonderful old town and,
in some respects, is Toledo in miniature. Lining its narrow,
crooked streets are quaint old houses, with overhanging
eaves supported by roof rafters similar to those which
are seen in the towns of southern Spain. Many of these

370

THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN 371

old mansions have large shady verandas overgrown with
creeping plants and masses of bright tropical flowers. In
some parts of the town iron chains stretched from house to
house support wonderful old lanterns, formerly the only
method of street lighting. Patzcuaro has some fine old
churches dating from early Spanish times, and crumbling
stone shrines are set in the walls at almost every street
corner. In the middle of the town is a wide plaza shaded
with venerable trees, and here on market nights swarms of
Indian vendors sell their fish, fruit and vegetables by the
light of little fires, making a scene that is wildly picturesque.
Although seven thousand feet above sea-level, the town is so
close to the hot lands that the market is always filled with
tropical fruits and flowers, and the streets are thronged
with natives in costumes of warmer altitudes.

Viewed from the shore, the lake presents a scene of sur-
passing beauty. It is rather narrow but of great length,
and from its very edge rise lofty cliffs or pine-clad mountains,
round the base of which its waters are often lost to view ;
while dotted over its surface are numerous little islands,
on some of which are primitive Indian villages of grass-
thatched bamboo huts. Queer flat-bottomed sailing boats,
for freight and passengers, are navigated by Indian mariners
on the blue waters.

A voyage of three hours in one of these craft took me
from the town of Patzcuaro to ancient Tzintzuntzan, now
a straggling Indian village, but which before the Spaniards
came was a great city and the capital of the Tarascan kings.
In the vicinity of the place there are a number of prehistoric
ruins. After the Conquest, Tzintzuntzan again became a
place of importance, but in the course of time its greatness
once more departed and it fell into decay. Bordering the
narrow streets of the village, which run at right angles,
are crumbling walls of stuccoed adobe, behind which are

372 MEXICO

the houses. Through gaping holes in the walls occasional
glimpses can be caught of once pretentious mansions, now
in ruins and overgrown with a tangle of vines.

The dilapidated parish church which stands in the middle
of the village was once the chapel of the powerful Convent
of San Francisco, which was closed in 1740, and since then
has gradually fallen into ruins. In the convent garden
there are still to be seen some venerable olive trees whose
gnarled trunks have weathered the storms of 350 years.
Beneath the shade of some of these were buried some of the
great dignitaries of the church and several of the chiefs who
sided with Corte*s in the days of the Spanish Conquest. The
Indians of Tzintzuntzan are industrious folk, mostly en-
gaged in farming and fishing, and are intensely devout.

My principal object in visiting Tzintzuntzan was to see
one of the most important paintings in the world, which
hangs in the old church, and is no less than a Titian which
was presented to the Convent of San Francisco by Philip II
of Spain. Its authenticity is beyond dispute. The subject
is the "Entombment of Christ."

Escorted by the padre and the sacristan, I was led
through the patio and along a dark corridor which ended at a
massive door, barred, chained and padlocked. After much
clanking of chains and creaking of rusty hinges, the key
turned in the padlock and the door was opened. The sac-
ristan carried a lighted taper, for the room was quite dark.
Stepping forward, the padre pulled back the shutters from
an unglazed window protected by iron bars, and a flood of
sunshine revealed the picture. The coloring was mag-
nificent, with all the superb tints for which Titian is
famous.

Strangely out of place the great picture looked, in the
midst of its tawdry surroundings, gleaming from a wide
carved white frame which had once been gilt. But its

11

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THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN 373

preservation is marvellous, probably due in a great measure
to the climate and to the clear air which circulates through
the church. Large sums of money have been offered for
the painting, the Archbishop of Mexico, among others,
having offered, it is said, $50,000 for it; but the devout
Indians of Tzintzuntzan steadfastly refused to part with
their masterpiece. They worship it with a blind idolatry,
even refusing to allow it to be photographed.

F. Hopkinson Smith, the well-known artist and author,
visited Tzintzuntzan some years ago, when tourists were
seldom seen in that region, and the painting was far more
rigorously guarded than it is to-day. In his book, "A
White Umbrella in Mexico, " he has given an interesting
account of his expedition and a technical description of
the famous painting, which, he says, is undoubtedly the
work of Titian.

In giving a brief history of the painting, Mr. Smith
adds: "In 1533 Charles V of Spain appointed Vasco de
Queroga to the Bishopric of Michoacan to restore peace
to that part of Mexico which had been almost depopulated
through the misgovernment of the Spanish officials. Que-
roga established his see in the church of San Francisco
at Tzintzuntzan in 1538; he founded schools, developed
agriculture, conciliated the natives and restored prosperity.
When Philip II ascended the throne, the good deeds of the
bishop reached him. During this period the royal palace
at Madrid was filled with Titian's finest pictures. Titian
was living at this period, and visited Spain in 1550. Re-
membering these dates, the religious zeal of Philip and
his interest in the distant church, it is quite possible that
he either ordered this very picture from the master himself
or selected it from the royal collection. It is quite improb-
able that the royal donor would have sent the work of
an inferior painter or a copy by one of Titian's pupils.

374 MEXICO

Another distinguishing feature, and by far the most con-
clusive, is its handling. Without strong contrasting tones
of color, Titian worked out a peculiar golden mellow tone
— divided it into innumerable small but effective shades,
producing thereby a most complete illusion of life. This
Titianesque quality is particularly marked in the nude body
of the Christ, the flesh appearing to glow with a hidden
light."

Mr. Smith made a close inspection of the picture and
examined it with the aid of a powerful magnifying glass.
"In the eagerness of my search," he says, "I unconsciously
bent forward and laid my hand on the Christ.

" 'Ciudado ! Estrangero, es muerte' (Beware, stranger, it
is death), came a quick, angry voice behind me. I started
back in alarm, and noticed two Indians in the room. One
advanced threateningly, and the other rushed out, shouting
for the padre. In an instant the place was crowded with
natives, clamoring wildly and pointing to me with angry
looks and gestures. The padre arrived, breathlessly fol-
lowed by Moon (the author's travelling companion).
'You have put your foot in it/ said Moon in English, in
great agitation. 'Now, do exactly what I tell you, and
perhaps we may get away from here with a whole skin.
Turn your face to the picture ! ' I did so. ' Now, walk
backwards, drop on your knees and bow three times, you
lunatic.'

" I had sense enough left to do this reverently and with
some show of ceremony. Then, without moving a muscle
of his face, and with the deepest solemnity, Moon turned to
the padre and said to him: 'This distinguished painter is
a true believer, holy father. His hand had lost its cunning,
and he could no longer paint. He was told in a dream
to journey to this place, where he would find this sacred
treasure, upon touching which his hand would regain its

THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN 375

power. See, here is the proof.' Here he pointed to a
sketch I had made which was resting on an easel. The
padre examined it, and repeated the miracle to the Indians
in their own tongue. The change in their demeanor was
instantaneous. The noise ceased; a silence fell upon the
group and they crowded about the drawing, wonder-stricken.
Moon bowed low to the padre, caught up the easel, pushed
me ahead of him, — an opening was made, — the people
standing back humbly, and we passed through the group
and out into the village and thence to the lake, where we
regained our boat and set sail."

From Patzcuaro I went to Queretaro, a town on the
Mexican National Railway, which almost rivals Puebla in
the number and size of its churches. It is a thriving place,
with a population of forty thousand, and is rapidly coming
to the front as a commercial centre.

In the early Spanish days Queretaro was not only one
of the greatest strongholds of Catholicism in Mexico but
was also the scene of a famous miracle. One of the Indian
chiefs baptized by the priests who accompanied Corte*s
was Fernando, Chief of the Otomites. Soon after his con-
version he marched an army to Queretaro, then an Indian
town, with the intention of conquering the inhabitants
and compelling them to accept Christianity. During the
battle which ensued, an angel is said to have appeared in
the heavens with a fiery cross, whereupon the fighting
ceased and the baptizing began. The old church of Santa
Cruz marks the site of the conflict and surrender. Of
another of the old Queretaro churches — Santa Rosa —
Charles Dudley Warner said: "It is one of the finest
chapels in the world, rich in wood carving and over-
laid with thick gold-leaf, almost gold plate. In some
places the gold is covered with transparent tortoise-
shell. The French, in 1866, tore down the great altar and

376 MEXICO

burned it to get the gold, securing, it is said, the value of
$1,500,000."

In 1867 Quei;etaro was the scene of the surrender of the
unfortunate Emperor Maximilian and his little force of im-
perialists to the victorious Republican army. In the old
convent of La Cruz, which served as the emperor's head-
quarters, the formal surrender took place on May 15,
an event which sealed the fate of the short-lived Mexican
Empire. The Republicans, it is said, were enabled to enter
the town through the treachery of Colonel Lopez, Maxi-
milian's chief-of-staff, who received a bribe of twenty
thousand pesos.

Under the title of "Fernando Maximiliano of Hapsburg,
Archduke of Austria," the emperor was summoned to
appear before a court-martial on charges of filibustering
and treason. He refused to attend, but his two generals,
Miramon and Mejia, who were indicted on the same charges,
were present during the proceedings. Although ably de-
fended, the emperor and his generals were found guilty
and sentenced to be shot the next day, but were granted a
reprieve for five days. All appeals for mercy, including
one from the United States government, were in vain,
President Juarez firmly refusing to interfere.

On the morning of June 19 the three victims were taken
to the Cerro de los Campanas, a hill near the town, and
placed against a low wall . An officer with seven riflemen —
the firing squad — were stationed a short distance away.
Maximilian went up to the soldiers, shook hands with them
and gave to each a gold coin. He then said, "Aim well,
muchachos " (boys), and pointing to his heart, added, "Aim
right here." Returning to his place, he addressed a few
words to the soldiers, expressing the hope that his blood
might be the last shed in the Mexican civil war. He then
shouted, "Viva Independencia, viva Mexico." Miramon

THE TITIAN AT TZINTZUNTZAN 377

and Mejia cried, "Viva Mexico, viva el Emperador." The
command to fire was then given, and the Mexican Empire
came to an end. The two generals fell at the first volley,
but it required a second volley before the emperor was dead.
He had requested that he should be shot on the body, so that
his mother might look upon his face. His body was in-
terred in the old convent of the Capuchins, but was after-
wards taken to Austria and buried at Miramar.

In 1869, with the permission of President Diaz, admirers
of Maximilian erected a chapelle expiatoire on the spot
where the execution took place, the project having been
approved by the House of Hapsburg. Diplomatic rela-
tions between Austria and Mexico were then resumed.
The beautiful little chapel of white stone has three slabs
near the altar marking the positions occupied by Maxi-
milian and the two generals at their execution.

CHAPTER XXV

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC

WHEN President Diaz, in 1907, formally opened the
Tehuantepec National Railway, he gave official recognition
to one of the most wonderful enterprises that the world
has witnessed in recent years. This railway, a magnificent
piece of engineering, runs across the Isthmus of Tehuan-
tepec from the Atlantic to the Pacific coast, and is now do-
ing on an important scale what it is intended the Panama
Canal shall eventually do, to a larger extent, in transporting
freight between the two oceans.

From the early days of the Spanish Conquest the Isthmus
of Tehuantepec was recognized as an important highway
from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Situated at the extreme
southern boundary of Mexico, the Isthmus, with the ex-
ception of Panama, is the narrowest neck of land on the
American continent. Cortes, it is said, conceived the idea
of building a canal across it ; but as this was not feasible,
a carriage road was constructed by the Spaniards. En-
gineers in later times recommended this route for a canal
in preference to Panama, the distance in a straight line
being only one hundred and twenty-five miles from the
Atlantic to the Pacific.

When the Panama project under French management
proved a failure, President Diaz, with his customary fore-
sight, proposed a railway across the Isthmus of Tehuantepec,
the idea being to unload vessels on the Atlantic or Pacific
side and take the cargoes across the Isthmus for reshipment.

378

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 379

The plan was formally carried out, and the railway was
completed in 1894. When opened to traffic, however, it
proved to be imperfect, so in 1899 the Mexican government
entered into an agreement with the English firm of S.
Pearson & Sons, whereby they and the government were to
be joint owners of the railway for fifty-one years and to
share the net earnings. Although the construction was
extremely difficult, owing to the nature of the country
traversed by the line, which included some deep canons,
numerous rocky cuttings and miles of swampy land, the
work was eventually finished, and the line, which is one
hundred and ninety miles in length, was opened to traffic.
The work was well done, and to-day the railway is one of
the best in Mexico and excellently managed. It is also
one of the few railways in the world which uses oil for fuel.

Fine harbors have been constructed at the ports of
Salina Cruz on the Pacific, and Puerto Mexico, formerly
called Coatzacoalcos, on the Atlantic coast, large warehouses
having also been erected for the storage of freight. At
both places the trains run right up to the ships' sides, where
there are various modern devices for unloading cargoes
quickly and economically and transferring them to the
railway cars or vice versa. At Salina Cruz one of the
finest dry-docks in the world is being built.

The Tehuantepec route will not only benefit Mexico by
building up its ports on the two coasts but is already prov-
ing of great importance to international trade. A large
amount of traffic which formerly went round Cape Horn
or across the Panama Railway is now going via Tehuan-
tepec. Another important fact is that this route is twelve
hundred miles shorter between New York and San Fran-
cisco than the Panama Canal route. The average freight
steamer would require four or five days to cover this dis-
tance, the expenses of the vessel for that period and the

380 MEXICO

tolls for passing through the canal representing a far greater
outlay than the charges incurred by the Tehuantepec route.
It will probably be possible for the average cargo to be
unloaded and carried across the Isthmus and reloaded in
two days, and considering the amount of labor involved,
the charges are reasonably low.

Tehuantepec is not only a much shorter route to the
Pacific ports of the United States but to the Orient and
Australia as well. American commercial interests are
already recognizing this, and are using it extensively for
the shipment of freight between the Atlantic and Pacific.
A contract has recently been entered into with the Ameri-
can-Hawaiian Steamship Company for the carrying of sugar
from Hawaii to New York via Tehuantepec, these great
sugar cargoes having formerly gone round Cape Horn. The
distance from Hawaii to New York via Tehuantepec is only
5305 miles, while by Cape Horn it is over 12,000.

It is a long journey from Mexico City to Tehuantepec,
but it is one that is well worth taking, for the route is
through those wonderful "hot lands" bordering the coast,
the veritable heart of the tropics. To reach Tehuantepec
from the capital, one has to take the Mexican Railway to
Cordoba, a distance of one hundred and ninety eight miles,
where connection is made with the Vera Cruz and Pacific
Railroad, which runs two hundred and two miles to Santa
Lucrezia in the extreme southern end of Mexico.

One evening at the beginning of March I started from
the capital for Tehuantepec, travelling to Cordoba in a
comfortable Pullman sleeping-car, and arriving there early
the next morning, with ample time to catch the train for
Santa Lucrezia, which left at nine o'clock. This train,
which was the most comfortable one that I had thus far
seen in Mexico, included Pullman sleeping- and drawing-
room cars, and a well-arranged restaurant. In the sleeping

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THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 381

compartments the berths were specially designed for service
in the tropics, and were provided with mosquito netting,
an import ant requisite in the insect-infested "hot lands."

The railway journey from Cordoba southward is full of
interest, the line running for nearly fifty miles through
plantations of sugar-cane, coffee, bananas, oranges, pine-
apples and other tropical and semitropical fruits. Then
comes a long stretch of fine grazing and agricultural lands,
with wide prairies, where can be seen the picturesque Mexi-
can cowboys or vaqueros mounted on swift ponies with
heavy saddles and cruel bits, carrying the ever present
lasso. There, are many villages along the line but no cities.
At Tierra Blanca, fifty-seven miles from Cordoba, there
is a branch line to Vera Cruz; and at Los Narajos the rail-
way crosses the Papaloapam River, the bridge and its ap-
proaches being over a mile long, the largest in Mexico.
Passing through a dense jungle for several miles, the line
again enters a prairie country, which continues for another
fifty miles.

At San Marcos (one hundred and fifty seven miles) the
prairie gives place to jungle and swamps, which in turn are
replaced by a dense tropical forest, largely unexplored, of
giant mahogany, ebony, dyewood and rosewood trees,
palms of all varieties, medicinal woods, vines, plants and
flowers. It is alive with chattering monkeys, green par-
rots and flocks of other gaudily colored birds seen only in
the tropics. This is indeed the forest primeval, vast and
impenetrable ! Coiling about the tree-trunks like green
great snakes are creepers and other parasites, which hang
from the boughs and replant themselves in the moist
earth. Among these are growing a variety of beautiful
orchids, while forming a dense undergrowth is a tangled
mass of wonderful ferns and flowering plants. In these
dense woods there lurks the fierce jaguar, called by the

382 MEXICO

Mexicans the tigre, and in their sombre depths crawl the
python and other tropical snakes.

This district would seem to promise a happy hunting-
ground for the sportsman, who could stalk the jaguar and
puma or the great river-hog, the tapir, floundering in its
marshy haunts, or bring down a good-sized deer or a fierce
wild bull ; or spear the ever game peccary. Birds — quail
and plover on the prairies, pheasants and turkeys in the
forest — are there in plenty. But so great are the diffi-
culties of traversing these tropical forests and so terribly
unhealthy are they that for the most part they are virgin
ground as far as sport is concerned. The Indians alone can
enjoy the chase in such solitudes ; and for the greater part
of the year they live upon the game which is so plentiful
and the wild fruits with which the woodlands abound.

From Cordoba to Santa Lucrezia the railway runs through
the "hot lands'7 again. Here are seen the hot-land habi-
tations, constructed of bamboo and light poles and thatched
with palm-leaves, affording shade from the sun, but allowing
the air to circulate freely; for the only shelter needed is
protection from the rains. In this part of the country
there are none of the imposing stone buildings found in
the temperate regions of Mexico, and there are very few
towns of any size. The tropical villages are not unlike
those in central Africa. They swarm with naked babies,
and boys and girls past childhood almost as simply clad.
The population in the hot country is much smaller than
that of the temperate zones, though it could easily support
an immense number of inhabitants. So wonderfully rich
is the soil that all kinds of tropical fruits, coffee, tobacco,
the vanilla bean and many drug-producing plants grow
luxuriantly. A large number of india rubber plantations
have been started of late years, and bid fair to make a
great success.

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 383

But fanning in the hot lands requires a great amount
of capital, and to be successful it must be conducted on a
big scale, with a large force of laborers. The land can be
bought cheaply enough, but that is only the preliminary
expense, for it has to be cleared and planted; and as a
rule it is only after years of careful cultivation that profit-
able returns can be obtained from such things as rubber,
coffee and cacao. Conducted by experienced men with
sufficient capital, however, coffee and banana culture are
proving extremely profitable in Mexico, and some large
fortunes are being made. Everything considered, there
are few richer countries in the world than these lands in
southern Mexico, in the States of Vera Cruz, Campeche
and Tabasco. With forests yielding mahogany and nu-
merous other valuable woods, with a prolific soil and a won-
derful climate, making it possible in some cases to raise
three crops in a single year, these hot lands must have a
marvellous future.

The dense forests and numerous swamps of the hot lands
would not seem to make this part of Mexico a very in-
viting place in which to live; but strange to say, these
tropical regions are not so very unhealthful, if a careful
system of living is followed. Intemperance in eating and
drinking has, of course, to be avoided, and fevers and
malaria are certain to result from exposure to rains or the
intense heat of the midday sun.

We reached Santa Lucrezia at half-past nine in the
evening. It is only a small village, with one wretched
hotel. Fortunately, passengers are not obliged to pass a
night there but can remain comfortably asleep in the Pull-
man car.1

The day had been baking hot, and even summer clothing

1 The trains now run direct to Salina Cruz, the service of late
having been much improved.

384 MEXICO

seemed unbearable, but at night the air was deliciously
cool. Swarms of mosquitoes and other insect pests buzzed
outside the car, some managing to find their way inside,
but safely behind the mosquito curtains we could ignore
them. Poets who rave about the " stilly night " could never
have visited the tropics of Mexico. There is no stilly night
there. From the neighboring woods came the incessant
croaking of frogs and the loud buzzing, whistling and chirp-
ing of innumerable insects, — a combined volley of sound
not unlike that made by a cotton mill at high pressure.
Strangely enough, nearly all these noises cease in the
daytime.

Near Santa Lucrezia are many plantations of tropical
fruits, coffee, cacao and rubber. Some groves of cultivated
rubber contain from one hundred thousand to one million
trees. Of the fifteen hundred species of rubber plants and
trees which exist, very few are found in Mexico. A tree
known as castilloa elastica, which is indigenous to the soil,
gives the best results and is chiefly grown in the plantations.
It begins to yield rubber when six or seven years old, but
the growers rarely tap it until it has reached the age of
nine or ten.

In extracting the caoutchouc or rubber, one or two V--
shaped incisions are cut in the trunk, penetrating the bark,
but not so deeply as to reach the wood of the tree, and al-
ways leaving behind some of the cambium or growing layer
of the stem, so that the wound may rapidly heal and the
tree eventually be suitable for tapping again. As soon as
the cuts are made, the milk-white latex begins to flow and
is caught in a galvanized-iron cup placed at the base of the
trunk. As much as half a pint of this fluid may run into
the cup, after which the flow ceases. Tree-tapping is usu-
ally carried out once a year, either in October, November
or December, and each tree usually lasts twenty-five years,

THE ISTHMUS OP TERUANTEPEC 385

producing one pound of rubber per annum when ten years
old. The latex, after being collected, is deposited in
barrels of water mixed with the juice of a wild vine or con-
volvulus (ipomcea bona nox) which hastens coagulation
and transforms it into a spongy white mass — the crude
rubber of commerce.

Over $25,000,000 has been invested in Mexican rubber
plantations, but very few of them have ever yielded satis-
factory dividends. In some instances this has been due
to incompetent management, coupled with the difficulty of
getting the proper kind of labor. Under the most satis-
factory conditions, however, it is doubtful whether Mexico
will ever be able to compete with Brazil, the Malay Pen-
insula or Ceylon, or even with Central America as a rub-
ber-producing country.

The growth of Indian corn in these hot lands of Mexico
is marvellous, attaining as it does a height of fifteen to
eighteen feet, with ears that will mature within sixty days
from planting. Similarly, sugar-cane in ten months will
have stalks twenty feet high and ten inches in circum-
ference. Bananas make a growth of twenty feet in a few
months. There are about twenty varieties, and when
properly cultivated, each stalk usually bears from seventy-
five to one hundred pounds of fruit. On some plantations,
where the plants are set about twelve feet apart, each acre
of land will produce from six hundred to nine hundred large
bunches a year. Under these favorable conditions, banana-
growing is proving wonderfully profitable. The growth of
fruit trees is just as wonderful. Peach trees two years old
attain a height of twelve feet and bear fruit ; oranges bear
at four years of age. The soil is rich, indeed practically
inexhaustible; the climate is summer all the year round,
and the rainfall is from one hundred to two hundred
inches per annum. With these advantages, tropical agricul-
2o

I

386 MEXICO

ture is certainly destined to become one of the greatest
wealth-producers on the American continent.

After spending the night at Santa Lucrezia, our train was
switched to the Tehuantepec National Railway the next
morning, and went on to Salina Cruz, which was reached
in the afternoon. At Rincon Antonio, a small place on
the way, which is the highest point on the line, the railway
company's general offices, workshops and hospital have been
established. The climate here is pleasant and salubrious,
the heat being tempered by the winds that are constantly
blowing across the isthmus.

The workshops at Rincon Antonio are equipped with
the most modern machinery and appliances for every
possible repair to the rolling-stock and engines in use on the
line. Here, as at Salina Cruz and Puerto Mexico, all the
machinery is driven by electricity generated by a steam
plant, crude oil being used for fuel. As at all other places
where Messrs. Pearson have large works, every care has
been taken here to make life as agreeable and homelike as
possible for managers and employees. Comfortable modern
houses have been erected for the various heads of depart-
ments, while the subordinate employees are lodged in ex-
cellent staff houses. A club-house has been built and
quarters provided for a Catholic chapel and a masonic
lodge. Special attention has been given to a pure and
abundant water-supply. The general officers of the rail-
way and the head men at the ports of Salina Cruz and
Puerto Mexico are Englishmen and Americans, the latter
being in the majority.

From Santa Lucrezia to the Pacific coast the line is fairly
level, passing through a succession of dense forests, among
low, rocky hills, across wide swamps and skirting some good
grazing lands. The soil here, as in other parts of the
Mexican tropics, is wonderfully fertile, and the growth of

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 387

vegetation is marvellous. This bountiful aspect of nature
constitutes, in fact, one of the many difficulties which con-
front the managers of the railway. So rapid is the growth
of the wild plants along the line that, if left to themselves,
they would soon overgrow the track. Laborers have to be
constantly employed in cutting down these rapid growths,
and the expenditure on this amounts to a large sum in
the course of the year.

I was surprised to find Salina Cruz so remarkably pro-
gressive and up-to-date, with smart new buildings, modern
houses and a comfortable hotel. When the railway was
first started, the site of the present town was occupied by
a squalid Indian village. A new town has since been laid
out, in accordance with modern ideas and sanitary prin-
ciples, the dwellings being erected on higher and more
healthy ground. The port is destined to become one of
the most important on the Pacific coast, and is an interesting
example of the progress that is taking place in this remote
part of Mexico. At the back of the town is a range of hills
which furnish some protection against the northers which
occasionally blow from the Atlantic side of the Isthmus. .
One of the features of the harbor is a massive stone break- /
water nearly a mile in length and a dock fifty acres in^
extent. In former days, owing to the numerous sand-bars
and the shallowness of the water, large vessels were unable
to enter the port, and there was no protection against the
stormy seas which occasionally sweep along the Pacific
coast. Ample protection is now afforded by the great
breakwater, and as the result of recent improvements the
harbor now has a draught of over thirty-five feet at low
tide.

Salina Cruz is becoming a very busy place. In the har-
bor, at the time of my arrival, were two large American
steamers discharging cargoes of sugar for transportation

388 MEXICO

across the Isthmus, while an English "tramp" was taking
on a quantity of freight which had come across the Atlantic.
Three lines of steamers touch at this port, the Kosmos Line
(German) running between Hamburg and Pacific coast
points of Mexico, Central, South and North America;
the Pacific Steam Navigation Company (American) whose
vessels call at the principal Mexican Pacific coast ports;
and the new Canadian line from Vancouver. By the
Kosmos line one can travel from Salina Cruz to various
ports in South America, — in Chili, Peru and the Argentine,
— and many travellers from the United States who wish
to avoid a long sea journey to the Pacific coast of South
America are now going by this route.

The wonderful improvements made at Salina Cruz have
been repeated on a similar scale at Puerto Mexico on the
Atlantic side of the Isthmus, where the old town has been
thoroughly renovated and put in good sanitary condition.
Some pestilential swamps which made the place a hot-bed
of yellow fever have been almost entirely filled in, and the
terrible scourge is now practically obliterated. The town
is situated at the mouth of a river of the same name, which
is navigable for seventy miles. Great stone jetties have
been constructed in the harbor, insuring an ample depth
of water; extensive wharves have been built, and some
good business buildings erected. Puerto Mexico is rapidly
becoming a place of importance; two lines of steamers
are now making regular calls there, and others are arrang-
ing to make it a port of entry.

Enormous sums have been expended in rebuilding the
Tehuantepec Railway and in carrying out the improve-
ments at the two ports. It is estimated that since the
work was begun the sum of $50,000,000 has been ex-
pended, and before the harbor works are perfected about
$5,000,000 more will have to be disbursed. In addition

THE I8THMU8 OF TEHUANTEPEC 389

to this, $10,000,000 has been appropriated by the Mexican
government, making a total expenditure on the railway
and ports of about $65,000,000.

The opening up of the country, which has resulted from
the successful operation of the Tehuantepec Railway, is
likely to be followed by further important developments
in southern Mexico. In the course of a few years it is
quite possible that a line will be built to Tehuantepec from
Oaxaca, less than one hundred and fifty miles distant,
thus tapping one of the richest parts of the country; an-
other line may possibly be built in an easterly direction
through the States of Campeche and Yucatan. Merida, the
capital of the latter State, is a busy city, with a popula-
tion of over a hundred thousand, and is only a few miles
from Progreso on the Gulf of Mexico, the nearest port to
Havana and New York.

One of the great projects of American statesmen has
been a Pan-American railway or direct railway route from
the United States to the southernmost republics of South
America. At various conferences between representatives
of the United States and the South American republics
this matter has been fully discussed. It is not generally
known that the idea is being gradually carried out. At
San Geronimo, on the Tehuantepec Railway, there is a
branch line called the Pan-American Railroad which runs
along the Pacific coast to Tapachula on the borders of
Guatemala. This line is to be gradually extended through
Guatemala, Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama
to South America, where it will connect with the lines al-
ready in operation there. While at present this is rather
a visionary prospect, still the world is moving rapidly, and
not so many years hence it may perhaps be possible to take
a train in New York for Chili and Peru via Mexico and
Central America.

390 MEXICO

The Pan-American line already built has opened up
the rich coffee lands in the State of Chiapas, and is gradually
developing several new ports along the Pacific coast. The
railway was built by an American company subsidized by
the Mexican government. The completion of the line to
Guatemala will probably tend to render that little republic
more peaceful by bringing it under the civilizing influences
of Mexico.

There is fine scenery along the Pan-American Railroad,
some of the mountain peaks in that part of the country
rising from eight to nine thousand feet. Near Tomala,
and some eight miles from the line, are the remains of an
ancient city, with temples and fortresses of cut stone, in the
midst of an almost impenetrable forest. The whole State
of Chiapas, through which the line runs, is filled with these
prehistoric relics. Greatest of all the ruins are those of the
city of Palenque, its wonderful temples and palaces being
overgrown by the luxuriant tropical woodlands. There is
an Indian tradition that Palenque covered an area of sixty
miles ; but the American traveller, J. L. Stephens, proved
this to be a ridiculous exaggeration. The city was about
two miles round. Several archaeologists who have visited
Palenque since Stephens have fully confirmed his estimate.

Before leaving the Isthmus, I visited the city of Tehuan-
tepec, a short trip by railway from Salina Cruz. It is a
queer, straggling, ramshackle sort of place, with a popula-
tion of some twenty thousand. Although it is always hot
and sunny there, the heat is generally tempered by a good
breeze blowing from the Pacific. It rains but seldom.
Most of the low, one-story buildings in the town show the
effects of earthquakes, which are not infrequent. As in
all the Mexican tropical lands, none of the buildings have
the solid, imposing appearance of those to be seen in the
temperate zones.

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 391

Until the railway was opened, Tehuantepec was shut
off from the outside world, strangers seldom going there.
For this reason many quaint customs and costumes still
survive, unaltered by the prosaic march of progress. The
natives belong to the Zapotec tribe of Indians, and are
remarkably clean. Groups of them are constantly bathing
in the broad river which runs through the town, and they
do not seem to share the strong antipathy for soap found
elsewhere among Mexican Indians. The clothing of both
sexes is generally immaculate. These Indians are very
closely akin to the cleanly Mayas of Yucatan, and are
believed by some authorities to be one of the remnants of
the Mayan race which probably once held all Mexico before
the wild, fighting tribes of Aztec type broke in from the
north, driving them southward to Yucatan and Guatemala.

Nothing else betrays so quickly the social condition of
a race as the status of its womankind. The difference
between the Zapotec women and their uncomely, unkempt
sisters of northern Mexico is almost the difference between
savagery and civilization. A Tehuantepec woman is a be-
ing who has rights and can enforce them. In the market-
place women conduct most of the business, as in France,
while the poor, henpecked men keep in the background.
The women usually hold the family purse, and it is even
impossible for a man to get credit unless his wife vouches
for him. They are not only shrewder and brighter but
more intelligent than the men, whose position is manifestly
inferior. Under these circumstances, Tehuantepec would
be a blissful abiding place for the suffragettes.

Of the docility of the men I saw a most amusing instance
during my visit. I stopped hi the market-place to buy
some fruit at one of the stands, which was presided over
by a buxom young woman with keen dark eyes. She was
gossiping energetically with a neighbor, while her husband

392 MEXICO

was seated near by placidly smoking a cigarette. Catching
sight of me, the comely Zapoteca called out sharply, " Pedro,
Pedro, attend to the senor." Pedro, a big, burly fellow,
came forward rather sheepishly and supplied my wants,
while his wife kept an Argus eye on him. He was about
to pocket the money I handed to him, but Mrs. Pedro was
ready for the emergency. " Pedro," she remarked severely,
"I want that cash," and the lamblike Pedro surrendered it
without a word of protest. He noticed my amused ex-
pression, however, and when his better half was not looking,
returned a covert smile which seemed to say, "I'm only
doing this for fun; I'm not really henpecked."

The Zapotec women are famous for their beauty, clean-
liness and their devotion to their homes. They are copper-
colored, with smooth, coarse black hair, small brown eyes,
aquiline features and fine white teeth, the face being char-
acterized by a gentle, pleasant expression. They are rather
short, well-proportioned and possess a natural grace of
carriage, probably because of their habit of bearing loads
on their heads. Besides being the housekeepers, they
weave cloth, mats, baskets and hammocks. Their cos-
tume is very quaint and attractive. They wear a little
jacket with extremely short sleeves, sometimes richly em-
broidered and cut rather low at the neck; then comes a
short upper skirt, generally of soft linen or cotton material,
and from the knees downward a second skirt of embroidery
or thick lace starched very stiffly. The jacket and upper
skirt are generally some shade of red or blue. They have
a peculiar head-dress of coarse lace, which is arranged in
several ways. On festive occasions they wind it round
their necks so that it spreads out something like a sixteenth-
century ruff; while for church wear it is worn somewhat
in the fashion of a French fishwife's cap.

The wealthy ladies of Tehuantepec do not wear diamonds,

THE ISTHMUS OF TEHUANTEPEC 393

but adorn themselves with necklaces of gold coins, usually
the large five, ten or twenty dollar gold pieces of the United
States. English, French and German coins are sometimes
worn, but are not considered so fashionable. The women
save all their money to buy these gold pieces, which, when
worn by them, present a rather beautiful appearance.
Their wealth and social standing are indicated by the
amount of gold they wear, and some members of the Te-
huantepec smart set are said to possess necklaces worth
fifteen hundred dollars and more. Even when arrayed in
all this finery, very few of the Tehuantepec women ever
wear shoes, most of the poor going barefooted and the
better class finding sandals more comfortable.

These gentle, orderly Zapotecs might well serve as models
for Mexicans farther north. They live quiet, peaceful
lives, enjoying the simplest diversions, their clean, tem-
perate habits producing the health, happiness and lon-
gevity which characterize them. Quarrels are rare, and
murder is unknown. They are extremely kind to animals,
and the burro or ox which serves the Zapotec is treated
as a pet. Bull or cock fights are not held because public
opinion is strongly against cruelty in any form. These
people are passionately fond of music, and the concerts
of their local band would do credit to any city.

CHAPTER XXVI

TARPON PISHING AT TAMPICO

ALTHOUGH the streams and rivers of Mexico have little
to tempt the angler, the Gulf coast has become famous the
world over as the place of places for tarpon fishing. This
wonderful fish, which sometimes attains a weight of over
two hundred pounds, and is as gamy as a brook trout, is
found in its perfection in the waters round Tampico, and
the delights of the sport have brought fishermen there
from all parts of the world.

Tampico, which has become almost synonymous with
tarpon, is about three hundred miles north of Vera Cruz ;
and it was to Tampico in quest of tarpon that I journeyed
after my visit to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec.

From the Isthmus I returned direct to Vera Cruz, which,
on this occasion, fully merited its reputation as a city of the
tropics. Instead of the gloomy weather and depressing
"norther" which I had encountered on my arrival some
four months before, there was a cloudless sky, the sun was
blazing with tropical intensity and people who walked the
streets all kept to the shady sides. The principal streets
had already been asphalted, and the work on others was
proceeding rapidly. When I first landed, there were no
carriages to be seen, owing to the bad paving, but now I
noticed several as I strolled through the town ; and before
I had been in the place half an hour I saw two automobiles
whizzing along the main street. The old mule-cars were
still running, but electric wires were being installed for

394

TARPON FISHING AT TAMP ICO 395

the new American electric cars. Wonderful indeed is the
march, or I should say the rush, of progress in modern
Mexico.

There is no railway between Vera Cruz and Tampico,
and as the country along the coast is very swampy and
there are no important towns there, it would be very ex-
pensive to build a line. But some day a railway is certain
to be built between the two places. At the present time
the only way to get from Vera Cruz to Tampico by railway
is to return to Mexico City and make a detour of several
hundred miles. For this reason travellers have to go by
steamer. There are two lines running between the two
ports — the Hamburg American and the Mexican Steam-
ship lines. The German liners are splendid vessels, several
of the large Atlantic steamers being used for the Mexican
service during the winter months. These steamers run
from Bremen, Havre and Plymouth to Havana and thence
to Vera Cruz and Tampico, returning to Europe by the
same route.

I had to wait three days at Vera Cruz for the Kron-
prinzessin Cecilie, on which I booked my passage to Tampico,
but managed to pass the time very pleasantly. The Hotel
Diligencia, where I found comfortable quarters, was a
typical Mexican hotel, facing the plaza, with a large, open,
tiled dining-room through which the breezes circulated re-
freshingly in the hot daytime. In the shade it was quite
comfortable, no matter how baking hot it might be in the
sun. Under the clear blue sky Vera Cruz was completely
changed; the soft-tinted houses, the palm trees and the
flowers in the plaza were all transformed into things of
beauty, proving how essential is the bright sun to life in
the tropics.

Having three days to spare before the steamer left for
Tampico, I took a trip to the famous city of Jalapa (pro-

396 MEXICO

nounced Hahlappa), eighty-two miles from Vera Cruz, on
the Inter-oceanic branch of the Mexican National Railway.
It is situated at about the same altitude as Orizaba, but
in point of picturesqueness far excels that city. Like
Orizaba, however, it lies at the foot of lofty mountains
which encircle it, the great snow-covered peak of Orizaba
being visible on clear days. The women of Jalapa, many
of whom are quite fair, are famed for their beauty, and
judging by the many attractive faces I saw in a short walk,
it would seem this reputation is well deserved. The Mexi-
cans, in fact, have a saying that Jalapa is a part of heaven
let down to earth, and the proverb "Las Jalapenas son
alaguenas" (Bewitching, alluring are the women of Jalapa).

A less pleasing characteristic of the town are its frequent
days of mist and rain, a very serious drawback to the en-
joyment of its great loveliness, which has given rise to an-
other saying in Jalapa. During these melancholy days,
the Jalapeno, muffled in his sarape, dismally mutters, " Avo
Maria purisima, que venga el sol" (Holy Virgin, let the
sun shine).

Jalapa means "a place of water and sand." It was an
Indian town at the time of the Spanish Conquest, and, be-
cause of its position on what for a long time was the main
road between Vera Cruz and Mexico City, early became a
place of importance. After the establishment of the Re-
public, it was made the capital of the State of Vera Cruz.
The medicinal plant from which that nauseous old family
medicine, jalap, is extracted is grown all around Jalapa.

The city is curious and old-fashioned, with houses of
crumbling stucco; their red-tiled roofs project over the
eaves so far that they seem to cover the sidewalks like a
shade, and extending from these are the spouts to carry the
rainfall from the roofs to the centre of the street. Jalapa
has an abundant supply of water and a perfect drainage

TARPON FISHING AT TAMPICO 397

system. Its streets slope gently to the middle of the road-
way, thus forming deep troughs or gutters, and all refuse
is soon washed beyond the city limits by the frequent
rains. This probably accounts for the scrupulously clean
appearance of the place. So steep are the streets that carts
or carriages cannot be used for the transportation of goods
or persons, all the carrying being done by cargadores or
pack-mules. A car runs from the railway station through
part of the main thoroughfare, and is the only wheeled
vehicle found in Jalapa, but even this requires six mules
to haul it up the steep grades.

There is a very pretty plaza in the centre of the town,
and some fine old churches, notably the cathedral, which was
founded in the sixteenth century, and the Church of San
Francisco, built in 1555. These and other sights may be
enjoyed by the visitor to Jalapa, and when the weather
is clear, a day may be delightfully spent in and about the
little city. But perhaps the most interesting sight of all
is to be witnessed in the cool of the evening, when the fair
Jalapenas stroll in the plaza to listen to the band, their
dark, flashing eyes reminding the susceptible Jalapenos of
the truth of their local proverb.

Upon my return to Vera Cruz from Jalapa, the weather
was still clear and warm, and I looked forward with pleasure
to my trip up the coast. The Kronprinzessin Cecilie was
advertised to sail for Tampico at six in the evening, the
journey taking about sixteen hours. When I went down
to the steamer, about four o'clock, I was greatly impressed
with German enterprise. A large crowd had assembled
on the wharf, listening to a brass band stationed on the
promenade deck, which was playing " Die Wacht am Rhein,"
the German ensign was flying from the steamer's foremast ;
and it was all like a little piece of Germany dropped down in
Mexico. From the remarks of the Mexicans which I over-

398 MEXICO

heard, they evidently seemed to think that Germany, next
to Mexico, must be the greatest country in the world.

I had not been aboard the ship many minutes before I
noticed a sudden change in the weather ; some dark clouds
on the horizon increased and spread with wonderful rapidity ;
before long, the sky began to take on an ominous leaden
tinge, and the sun's rays shone only at intervals through
the drifting clouds. The breeze, which had been quite light,
began to increase in force, and the sea, which had been as
smooth as glass, was very soon covered with whitecaps.
I heard cries of "Norte " everywhere. Some fishing boats
came dashing into the harbor for safety, with the spray
flying over them; a steam launch followed them, cutting
through the rolling waves. Before two hours had passed,
the surf was breaking over the jetties and another norther
was full upon us. The captain of the steamer did not con-
sider it safe to venture outside that night, and sailing was
delayed until seven the next morning. All the way up the
coast we had this head-wind, and despite the luxury of the
steamer, those passengers who were not good sailors did not
find it exactly a voyage of pleasure.

For all dangers and discomforts I found ample recom-
pense on my arrival at Tampico. This important port lies
at the mouth of the Panuco River, a magnificent water-
way, in which the greatest fleet could find ample harbor
room. Tampico, with a population of one hundred and
sixty-three thousand, is, in fact, becoming the chief port
of Mexico, even surpassing Vera Cruz; and with its
safe harbor and deep water, the largest vessels can
lie alongside the wharves to receive and discharge cargo,
Over four hundred ocean steamers call at Tampico monthly,
regular liners plying between New York, Mobile, New
Orleans, Galveston, Havana and European ports, and the
southern seaport cities of the Mexican Gulf coast. At a

TARPON FISHING AT TAMP ICO

cost of over $3,000,000 a fine new custom-house has been
built, and also a great wharf at which five large steamers can
lie at the same time. The harbor is always full of shipping,
presenting quite a lively and busy scene. The docks are
situated some little distance up the river, and back of these
is the city, a large part of which stands on a high bluff,
rising to a height of nearly fifty feet.

While its appearance is very different from that of
other Mexican cities, Tampico is an attractive-looking place.
The houses usually have sloping roofs, are tinted in many
colors and have wooden verandas along the fronts of each
story. On the river front is a picturesque market-place,
with tents and numerous white umbrellas beneath which the
vendors gather; near this is the main plaza, from which
tram-cars run to all parts of the city.

The rivers which join the sea at Tampico are navigable
by small boats for a long distance into the interior, and
pass through some fine tropical scenery. Over five thou-
sand boats, varying in length from twenty to sixty feet,
are kept on the Tameso and Panuco rivers to bring to
Tampico the wild and cultivated products of the country.
Almost every conceivable form of tropical plant and fruit
may be found in their cargoes, as well as native-made earthen-
ware and other manufactured articles. The Panuco River
is about eighteen hundred feet wide at Tampico, and has
an average breadth of eight hundred feet for several miles
from its mouth. Some distance below the city are the
jetties which form the harbor where the river flows into
the sea ; and here is La Barra, a village with a fine sandy
beach on which the surf rolls invitingly. During the day-
time the place is usually thronged with bathers.

Tarpon, however, was the sole object of my visit to
Tampico. Many angling enthusiasts travel thither each
season to fight the monstrous fish, all of whom make their

400 MEXICO

headquarters at the Southern Hotel, the proprietor of which
is a jovial American, Colonel Poindexter. Among the
fishermen who come to Tampico are various American mil-
lionaires and many of the English and French nobility,
the register of the Southern Hotel containing names that
are well known in social circles the world over. Mine host,
the Colonel, is himself a keen angler, and looks after his
fellow-devotees of the rod and reel. For the sum of four
dollars a day he provides them with all the necessary fish-
ing-tackle, and a boat with an experienced native to row
and assist in the sport.

Conducted in this way, tarpon fishing is not an expensive
sport, and what is more, if the angler has ordinary good
luck, he rarely leaves Tampico without landing one of these
big fishes. Very different was the experience of a friend of
mine, a wealthy English angler, who once spent several
weeks on the gulf coast of Florida in quest of tarpon, which
is popularly known there as the "silver king." He chartered
two small yachts to provide quarters for himself and the
members of his fishing party, while a small steam tug was
also engaged for work on the fishing grounds. In addition
to the crews, a staff of skilled fishermen were employed to
aid in tracking the wily "silver king" to his watery lair.
After cruising up and down the coast for nearly six weeks
without seeing a tarpon, the chase was abandoned in disgust.
This could never have happened at Tampico, hi whose
waters there are tarpon in plenty.

For a day after my arrival the " norther " blew on, and
then the weather became fine and calm again. Under these
auspicious circumstances I made a start one morning in
search of tarpon, making my cruise in a boat made from the
trunk of a ceiba tree. It was about twenty feet long and
twenty inches wide, painted blue outside and green within,
and was manned by an Indian paddler who sat in front, while

TARPON FISHING AT TAMPICO 401

I took my seat amidships. I had a strong rod with a stout
reel, while my line was braided linen, about six hundred
feet long, of which four hundred and fifty feet was kept
coiled inside the canoe as slack in case something took the
hook, for not only tarpon but great jewfish, shark and curel
(a large species of pike, weighing as much as sixty pounds)
are plentiful in the river.

The tarpon has a thick, bony jaw, and when it takes the
bait, the angler must give his line a strong, quick jerk, other-
wise the fish is liable to get away. As soon as the bait is
taken, the tarpon, rushing to the surface of the water with
lightning rapidity, makes a high leap in the air. Unless the
hook is driven well into the jaw, he will shake it out of his
mouth, and again, if the line is held too tight, he is certain
to snap it. To catch a tarpon, therefore, needs some skill
as well as strength. As a well-known angling writer has
very correctly said : " Tarpon fishing is the pitting of a man-
sized fish against an angler whose rod and line seem utterly
inadequate for the fight. It is the taking of a seven-foot
giant with a slender thread, and this in a fight that may
wear away an afternoon, the whole combat being accom-
panied by a series of thrilling leaps."

We went up the river with the tide to the south bank, and
at first the fish did not bite. Along the bank I noticed
extensive pastures where large herds of cattle were fatten-
ing for shipment to Cuba and Yucatan. These cattle come
from the Para grass pastures of southeastern Mexico in the
State of Tamaulipas (in which Tampico is situated) and the
states of Vera Cruz and San Luis Potosi. Between sixty
and eighty thousand head pass through Tampico every year.

Chatting with my Indian boatman, I almost forgot that
I was fishing, when suddenly my float disappeared. I in-
stantly gave a sharp jerk and threw out some slack. The
next moment my line was pulled almost tight, and about

2D

402 MEXICO

a hundred feet away a large silvery fish leaped in the air.
He appeared to be about seven feet long, and seemed to
jump twice his length out of the water. It was a tarpon,
king of game fishes. Amidst a cloud of spray up in the air
he went again, his silver scales glistening with rainbow hues
in the rays of the sun. Then followed a succession of leaps,
none of them alike, while the head of the great fish shook
angrily from side to side in his ineffectual efforts to cast
out the hook. He disappeared and sulked for a time
beneath the water, and then came another series of rushes
and leaps, the combat taking over an hour. A half hour
passed before he was tired out and I pulled him to the side
of the boat for the Indian to gaff. On landing him, I found
that he was only of medium size, weighing about one hun-
dred pounds. He did not look nearly so big as when he was
leaping and plunging.

Tarpon have been caught at Tampico weighing over two
hundred pounds, and measuring over seven feet in length,
and it has taken hours to land them. The average catches,
however, range from four and a half to six and a half feet
long and from seventy to one hundred and seventy pounds.
One fish for a day is generally considered good sport, and
has usually to be paid for by several days of tired muscles.
The sport is not unattended with danger; for when a big
fish has not been properly gaffed, he is sometimes stirred
into fresh activity, lashing out with his tail with a force
strong enough to stave in a canoe. His cutting jaws can
also inflict ugly wounds. A well-known American angler,
while fishing for tarpon off the Florida coast, hooked a mon-
ster weighing considerably over a hundred pounds. Dur-
ing the combat the great fish made a leap which landed him
with a crash on the angler's back, inflicting injuries which
nearly killed the unfortunate fisherman, laying him up for
nearly two years. The only disappointing feature of tarpon

TARPON FISHING AT TAMPICO 403

fishing is that the dead fish is of no value whatever, the
flesh being flavorless and rarely eaten. Occasionally some
angling enthusiast has his big fish stuffed and mounted;
the silvery scales, which measure about four inches in width,
are also sometimes kept as souvenirs.

Going down to the jetties the next day, I fished with
one line in the river and another in the sea, catching about
twenty pounds of fish of all kinds and sizes, some of them
quite gamy, especially the pargito, a fish weighing from
one to five pounds, of dark color above and white below,
somewhat resembling a bass and making a good fight when
hooked.

The fisheries at Tampico are the finest in the Gulf of
Mexico, presenting admirable opportunities for the estab-
lishment of canning factories to supply the Mexican market,
which now depends on Europe and the United States.
As the fish are very abundant, and the harbor improvements
make the banks easy of access in all weathers, this industry
could be carried on during the entire year, and at the
present time almost without a competitor in Mexico.

CHAPTER XXVII

IN NORTHERN MEXICO

THAT part of Mexico which extends southward for three
or four hundred miles from the border of the United States
has very little resemblance to the semi-tropical regions
still farther south or to the "hot lands" along the coast.
It is largely a vast plateau, with great plains devoted to
grazing purposes and providing pasturage for hundreds
of thousands of cattle. It is in the northern states of
Chihuahua, Coahuila and Durango that the greatest estates
in the country are situated, one multi-millionaire in Chihua-
hua having a vast property of seventeen million acres.
The traveller can roam for days, crossing mountains,
valleys and plains without leaving this princely domain.
On some of these estates there are private railways, with
railway stations and numerous villages. In this region
are great ranches, employing hundreds of cowboys and pre-
senting phases of life fully as picturesque as the once famous
American wild West.

As my visit to Mexico was now drawing to a close, and
I had thus far confined my travels to southern Mexico, I
decided to return to New York by train, and on the way
through the great central plateau to stop at one or two
points and see something of the country. With this object
in view, I left Tampico one morning bound for San Luis
Potosi, about two hundred and fifty miles distant. The
branch of the Mexican Central Railway which connects the
two cities is noted for its scenic attractions, the views

404

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 405

along the way rivalling those on the Mexican Railway
between Vera Cruz and the capital.

Leaving the coast and running westward, the line crosses
a series of great sloping plains, extending for nearly a
hundred miles, which are well adapted for grazing purposes.
They are covered with a coarse, luxuriant grass known as
Para, which is ever green and is a great fattener of cattle.
Numerous streams are crossed, for the country is unusually
well watered. Coffee, oranges, bananas, limes, ginger and
other tropical fruits and plants grow luxuriantly through-
out this region, and the climate is delightful.

Mounting upwards from the foot-hills, the line reaches
the mountains and eventually attains an altitude of over
six thousand feet ; the scenery is superb, especially in the
so-called Abre de Caballeros. Here the train runs along
the side of a lofty mountain beneath the shadow of great
cliffs which tower far above, while below is a deep, rocky
canon. From a neighboring mountain-side leaps a marvel-
lous and beautifully colored waterfall, pouring down in one
cascade after another until there are a score or more, some
over a hundred feet in height and one fully three hundred
feet, making together a chain of nearly a mile in length.
All around are towering mountain peaks. The combined
effects of water, land and sky are wonderfully grand.

Farther on from this point there are more wonderful
views and magnificent distances as the line curves, turns
and twists upwards among the mountains : at one point,
six curves of the track are in sight, while twelve hundred
feet below are the luxuriant tropical valleys, with here and
there bright green fields of sugar-cane and fruits. The
line winds along a shelf hewn in the side of the almos
perpendicular cliffs, around curves, through a successi
of tunnels, then through the wild San Ysidro Valley,
mountain-sides of which are densely wooded. It th

406 MEXICO

emerges on the sloping plain of the table-land where, at an
altitude of 6116 feet, is situated the city of San Luis Potosi.

Twenty years ago this old town, which was founded in
1566, was but little known to the outside world ; but since
the advent of the railways it has become a thriving com-
mercial place. Situated in a fertile valley, it is surrounded
by mountains rich in mineral wealth, especially silver and
copper, the San Pedro mines near the city being among
the most productive in Mexico. The city, in fact, derives
its name from its supposed resemblance to Potosi in Peru, a
famous silver-mining place. It is a bright, clean, attractive
town, with handsome streets which vividly recall those of
Seville, and abounds in fine old churches, rich in native
decorative art. Among the public buildings are the library
and museum, the mint and the state capitol, San Luis
Potosi being the chief city of the State of the same name.
With good hotels and theatres, public baths and lines of
electric cars, the city shows every sign of progress, and has
attracted a large number of foreigners who have settled
there to engage in business. It is distinguished by a general
appearance of neatness, which is largely due to a local law
compelling the citizens to keep their dwellings in presentable
condition, and prevents their becoming careless. During
my stay in the city, I visited one or two of the large factories
there, the machinery of which is operated by electrical
power, one of these establishments, which is devoted to the
manufacture of ready-made clothing, having all the latest
appliances. In the workrooms the cutting, sewing, press-
ing and even the attaching of buttons is all done by ma-
chines driven by electrical power.

The country around San Luis Potosi is wonderfully
productive, and this has done much to increase the city's
prosperity. On the great haciendas throughout the State
are grown a variety of crops, including wheat, barley, sugar-

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 407

cane, cotton and tobacco ; there are also a large number of
ranches, the country being exceptionally well adapted for
cattle.

From this flourishing district I made a journey of one
hundred and fifty miles on the Mexican Central Railway
to the picturesque old town of Aguas Calientes or Hot
Springs, a popular health resort. It is a quaint, sleepy
place, with a population of thirty-eight thousand, and is
situated at an altitude of six thousand feet, the climate
being delightful. There are several good hotels in the town,
which are generally well filled, as visitors flock to the
springs from all parts of Mexico. In cases of rheumatism
and similar diseases the waters of Aguas Calientes are said
to effect remarkable cures. At the springs the old bath-
houses have been strangely named after the apostles, the
figure of one of the sacred twelve being placed over each
door, with figures indicating the temperature of the water
within. The town is famed for its pottery, the Aguas
Calientes ware; and sarapes are manufactured there in great
quantities. Until recently the town was also noted for its
drawn-work, which was the principal occupation of the
feminine population, the finest linen being drawn in the
most beautiful and complicated designs. One beautiful
drawn-work costume, which was made in the town and
intended for exhibition, took nine years to complete, three
hundred expert needlewomen being employed on it. It
is without seams, of exquisite design, and is valued at $2000.
Drawn-work, however, will soon be a thing of the past in
Aguas Calientes, as the women now find work in factories
or other occupations which yield better wages. At the
present time a great deal of imitation drawn- work is actually
imported from Germany and sold to unsuspecting tourists
as the work of native needlewomen. Even the gorgeous
Mexican sarapes, I was told, are not all manufactured in

408 MEXICO

Aguas Calientes by patient Indian workmen, but many of
them, sad to relate, are "made in Germany."

From Aguas Calientes the Mexican Central Railway runs
northward through the states of Durango and Chihuahua
to El Paso in Texas, a large, enterprising town which has
become an important railway centre. From there Cali-
fornia can be reached by direct train via New Mexico and
Arizona. There are also connecting lines there which
take the traveller to other parts of the United States.

Some remarkable developments are being made in this
northern part of Mexico ; and the rapidity with which the
whole country is being transformed is only realized when
one has actually been there. Lying so close to the United
States, northern Mexico has naturally attracted large
numbers of Americans who are settling there and engaging
in mining, farming and various other branches of business.
New mines are being constantly opened, factories are spring-
ing up and railways are being extended in all directions.
This rush of progress has had a noticeable effect on the old
cities of the north, notably Durango, Chihuahua and Za-
catecas, which are being rapidly modernized. Each of
these cities has from thirty to forty thousand inhabitants,
and all of them are built in the same substantial manner,
with large business houses and fine public buildings. Before
the railways came they were sleepy, out-of-the-world places,
seldom heard of; to-day, like San Luis Potosi and other
towns, they have shaken off their lethargy, suddenly be-
come busy places and are steadily increasing in size and
importance.

Zacatecas is one of the most important silver-mining
centres in Mexico; since the metal was first mined there,
in 1546, the mines have produced an amount estimated at
over $700,000,000. The present annual output is about
$3,000,000.

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 409

Durango might be called the Pittsburg of Mexico, as it
is the centre of an important iron industry. The smoky
atmosphere and dingy back streets of Pittsburg, however,
are happily non-existent, for Durango is a picturesque city,
with fine, clear, mountain air. Near the city is a mountain
of iron ore, averaging from seventy-five to ninety per cent
of pure metal, almost solid iron! A cavalier in Cortes'
time, one Senor Mercado, heard a wonderful story of a
mountain of silver, and visited the present site of Durango,
where it was supposed to be. To his intense disgust he
found nothing but iron. His memory has been perpetuated
by the name of the mountain, which is called Cerro Mer-
cado. In the neighborhood there are a few silver mines,
but iron is king. Durango, by the way, is over seven
hundred miles from Mexico City, which gives some idea
of the magnificent distances of Mexico.

One of the most important railway enterprises which has
been carried out in northern Mexico is the building of the
Kansas City, Mexican and Orient Railway, which is now
approaching completion. This railway, which is the first
direct line to cross the frontier between the United States
and Mexico, will extend from Kansas City to the Bay of
Topolobampo on the Mexican Pacific coast, a distance of
1659 miles. It runs through the states of Chihuahua
and Sinaloa, opening up a magnificent country of immense
area, rich in mineral and agricultural resources, and offer-
ing tempting inducements to settlers with small capital.
Topolobampo is one of the most beautiful harbors in the
world, having a great resemblance to the famous Bay of
Rio Janeiro. The railway will connect there with steamers
for the Orient, several lines having arranged to make the
port a place of call ; and in a few years this place, which
has been named Port Stillwell, will become one of the
busiest towns on the coast. Mr. Arthur E. Stillwell, who

410 MEXICO

conceived the idea of this wonderful railway, has carried it
out with remarkable energy, having enlisted in the enterprise
a large amount of British, French and American capital.

Agriculture is making great progress in the northern
states of Mexico, irrigation having been introduced very
extensively, with wonderful results. To encourage this
system of agriculture, the Mexican government has re-
cently appropriated $10,000,000 to assist the owners of
irrigated lands in making further improvements. The
import duties on agricultural implements, cattle for breed-
ing purposes, etc., will also be removed for a term of years
for their benefit, while the export duties on the products
of irrigated lands will also be taken off. Mexican lands,
except those along the coast, are largely dependent upon
irrigation, and by this system millions of acres of land here-
tofore unproductive are now producing enormous crops.
Wherever irrigation is introduced, the seemingly worthless
soil at once becomes wonderfully fertile.

Cotton growing is also an important industry in this
part of the country, and a number of mills are in successful
operation. Great quantities of wheat are grown in Chihua-
hua, the crop averaging about 1,500,000 bushels a year.
Sheep farming is about to be undertaken in this State by
an English company, which has recently purchased a tract
of land fifty miles square. This is to be stocked with sheep
from Australia, and by breeding and interbreeding with
the best native stock, it is believed that a breed of sheep can
be developed in Mexico which will equal any in the world.
Several Australian sheep experts have been engaged for this
great ranch. Sheep farming in Mexico has thus far been
conducted in a very haphazard way, and the country has
never been regarded as suitable for this industry. The work
of the English company is therefore being watched with
a great deal of interest.

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 411

In the extreme northwest of Mexico, beyond Durango
and Chihuahua, is the rich agricultural and mining State
of Sonora, which borders the Pacific Ocean. It is the second
largest State in the Republic, but for some years it has
continued in a condition of panic-stricken stagnation owing
to the Yaqui Indians, who to the number of about five
thousand have been carrying on a campaign of revenge
against the whites. Mines are shut down and industries
neglected, while the haciendas are fortified, and no white
dare venture far from the towns or cuartels, the points
where the troops are concentrated. Some idea may be
formed of the interests involved in this struggle by the fact
that at the banks of Guaymas and other Sonora towns
there are securities representing over $50,000,000 of Ameri-
can capital which has been sunk in the Yaqui district of
Sonora and is now, for the time at least, dead money.

There seems to be some doubt as to whether the Yaquis
are the bloodthirsty savages their would-be Mexican masters
like to paint them, or whether, in the language of Senor de
Zayas Enriques, a well-known Mexican who has espoused
their cause, they are a race of heroes. Probably the truth
is somewhere between the two views. Of their bravery
there can be no doubt. Wonderful stories are told of it.
One Yaqui chief pursued by rurales — the Mexican country
soldiers — from the vantage post of a rock, picked off his
enemies one by one, till, surrounded, he had to face a
mounted officer who rode at him with uplifted sabre. He
parried the blow with his knife, and vaulting on the horse's
back, pinioned the arms of the officer and spurred the horse
to a precipice near. There the horse balked, but the Ya-
qui plunged his knife into its flank and the animal, with
its two riders — the Yaqui crying out in triumph, the officer
with terror — were hurled to death on the rocks below.

So much for their bravery. As for their savagery, it

412 MEXICO

is a fact that they have waylaid many harmless persons —
Americans, for the most part — and killed them all, in-
cluding women and children. There are also many cases of
alleged brutality against them. Some of their own tribe, un-
willing to take up arms against the Mexicans, were treated,
so it is reported, in a way so horrible that the Yaquis must,
if it be true, forfeit everyone's sympathy. The soles of
their feet were cut off, their eyes gouged out, and they were
dragged out into a waterless prairie and left to die. From
such atrocities it might be supposed that the Yaquis are
like the Apaches and other bloodthirsty North American
redskins of former times, wearing feathers and painting
their faces. The Yaquis, however, while somewhat darker,
are not unlike the other Mexican Indians; they have
always been an agricultural people, and to-day most of
them dress in the ordinary peon costume. When left to
themselves, they till their little farms and are quiet and in-
dustrious. Most of them speak Spanish as well as the Yaqui
dialect.

The story of Yaqui discontent dates back to the Conquest.
At that time the tribe numbered, it is related, three hundred
thousand. They never submitted to Corte*s, and thereafter
a guerilla warfare existed in Sonora, broken by more serious
uprisings, such as those in 1735 and 1825. In 1832 they
successfully opposed any Mexican interference with their
tribal rights, and until 1848 were left in supreme control
of their lands round the Yaqui River. In that year war
broke out again, lasting until 1897, when a truce was called
and a treaty finally concluded. But in less than a year,
owing, it is said, to the wrongful diversion of an irrigation
stream by a Mexican landowner, the Yaquis flew to arms,
and now hold the district by a system of terrorism. The
country is covered with brush from ten to fifteen feet high,
through which are trails known only to the Indians. They

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 413

are all good shots, and while they never ride, can cover on
foot as much as seventy-five miles a day. So keen is their
system of scouting that the clumsy, ill-drilled Mexican
soldiers, recruited mostly from the jails, have no chance;
and in hand-to-hand fighting the government troops have
so far always come off second best.

An almost incredible condition of affairs exists at the
present time as the result of the Yaqui warfare. Bands
of these bloodthirsty natives are constantly prowling about
the country and making attacks where least expected. An
instance of this occurred two or three years ago at the little
town of Toledo, when the mayor gave a modest banquet,
the entertainment being held on the flat roof of his house,
according to the custom in that warm country. The roof,
being illuminated, offered an easy mark for some Yaquis
who happened to be lurking in the mountain overlooking
the town. In the midst of the festivities bullets suddenly
rained among the guests, killing four persons, including
the mayor's wife and daughter. Several of the survivors
were wounded as they hastily retreated. Similar outrages
have occurred elsewhere. Even at Hermosillo, the capital
of Sonora, a beautiful and progressive city, it is unsafe to
venture many miles away. Not long ago, it is said, a
party of Americans, while motoring near the town, were
fired upon by some Yaquis concealed in the bush, and barely
escaped with their lives. Hermosillo is in the centre of
a rich mining region, and in the mountains near the town
are a number of mines of gold, silver and copper. The soil
in this part of the country is wonderfully fertile, great
quantities of oranges, wheat, maize, cotton, sugar-cane and
tobacco being grown. Mining and agriculture, however,
have been seriously retarded by the constant dread of the
Yaquis.

Short shrift is usually given to the Yaqui marauders

414 MEXICO

when caught red-handed by the Mexican soldiers. With-
out the semblance of a trial, a dozen or more will sometimes
be stood in a line and shot down ; sometimes they are hanged
to trees, and their bodies left dangling by the roadside as
a warning to their surviving comrades. Deportations of
large numbers of inoffensive Yaquis to the swamps of Yu-
catan are also being carried out ; and the Mexican govern-
ment continues to wage a merciless war of extermination.

It was almost the end of March when I returned to San
Luis Potosi to resume my journey northwards, my desti-
nation being the city of Monterey, two hundred and nine
miles distant. The Mexican National Railway by which I
travelled runs some comfortable trains direct to St. Louis,
via Monterey and Laredo, the distance being about 1553
miles and the journey occupying a little over four days.
The train which I took, one morning, the Mexico City-St.
Louis Express, had left the capital the day before, and was
composed exclusively of Pullman cars.

From the railway the country is not seen at its best, but
for some miles beyond San Luis Potosi the line runs through
a succession of fields and gardens planted with semitropi-
cal fruits and vegetables kept green by irrigation. In this
fertile region there is a great estate through which the rail-
way passes, and a brief view is obtained of the picturesque
hacienda building of white stone, which looks like a walled
fortress, surrounded with tropical gardens, bright with flow-
ers. Near by two white church towers peep above a little
village belonging to the estate, which is owned by the Frias
family and is one of the finest in Mexico. Over a thousand
people are employed on it. For nearly seventy miles the
train ran through the great rolling plain, strewn with cactus
and occasionally relieved by long stretches of cultivated
land, and then reached the town of Catorce. Near the
railway station at this place there is a stone monument

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 415

inscribed, " Tropic of Cancer," the country south of the
monument being within that zone. Passing this imaginary
line brought no perceptible difference in the weather, which
continued as warm as ever, with the usual amount of dust
in the air. Catorce is Spanish for " fourteen," the town
taking its name from a band of fourteen desperados who
in ancient times had a fortress there, and levied tribute
on the inhabitants of the surrounding country. From
San Luis Potosi there is a gradual descent from the table-
land, and at Catorce the line leaving the plains winds be-
tween the mountains, still continuing the descent.

The next important town is Saltillo, the capital of the
State of Coahuila. Near it was fought the battle of Buena
Vista between the Mexicans and the Americans in February,
1847; when the Mexican army was totally defeated. It is
a favorite resort for well-to-do Mexicans, and during July
and August life there has been described by a local American
scribe as "a veritable whirl of parties, balls, concerts and
burro excursions." Standing high up in the mountains
at an altitude of 5249 feet, the town has one of the finest
summer climates in Mexico. Saltillo is not only a health
resort, but it has become an important manufacturing place,
several large smelters, rubber factories and flour mills
having been started there. It has some fine streets, good
shops, and a magnificent club-house which contains the
largest ball-room in Mexico.

From Saltillo southwards there is a succession of barren,
sun-baked mountains, rocky canons and arid valleys, dotted
with cactus, but almost destitute of trees, though occasion-
ally there is a green, irrigated patch of vegetation. It is
a desolate country ; for miles and miles scarcely a town or
village is passed. Occasionally at small stations there are
a few adobe huts where blanketed peons and some lean
goats are visible, but otherwise there is little sign of life.

416 MEXICO

It is a melancholy country, and is rather depressing to
the spirits. It seemed to have had an especially bad effect
on two Americans who took seats near me in the smoking
compartment, whither I had adjourned to try the efficacy of
a good cigar in warding off the blues. They were strangers,
but soon struck up an acquaintance. One of them, a dark,
plump, rather Jewish-looking young man, with smoothly
shaven face, had every appearance of being a "drummer."
His companion was a long, lean, angular Westerner, evi-
dently a farmer, with a scrubby gray beard which he stroked
ruminatingly with one hand, while in the other he held
a big, black, unlighted cigar, which he chewed vigorously
from time to time.

"Well, sir," remarked the drummer, "we shall soon be
seeing the last of Mexico, and getting back again into God's
country. Well, I rather reckon they'll never see yours
truly in Mexico again for the rest of his natural life." " You
ain't done well, then," observed the Westerner. "Well?"
retorted the other. "Why, I've hardly got the backbone
to face my people in Chicago. I haven't even covered
my expense account." "What's your line, partner?"
asked the lean man, with some show of interest. "I'm
travelling for a soap house," replied the drummer, with a
deep groan.

The farmer gave a vindictive bite to the end of his cigar.
"Well, well," he remarked, after a short silence, "I reckon
we're both in the same boat, neighbor, when it comes to
losing money." Here, to my horror, he actually produced
a small piece of silver ore from his pocket. Surely, thought
I, this cannot be another "man with a scheme." Is there
no escaping them ? But as I listened I heard a very differ-
ent story from that which I expected. "Well, sir," con-
tinued the rural tourist, "that little chunk of metal cost
me a pretty pile of money. I got it about two years ago

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 417

from a fellow that came from down Guanajuato way and
was a-visiting in our district. He talked me into putting
up two thousand good American dollars to work a hole in
the hills somewhere, that he swore was chock full of silver.
We was both a-going to be millionaires in a few months.
Well, I ain't never seen one cent back. Finally, I got
tired o' waiting, and came down to Guanajuato to see if
anything was coming out o' that hole." "What did you
find in it ? " asked the drummer. " Wai," dryly replied the
man from the West, " I jest found that there wasn't even
a hole. I've been a-trying ever since to lay my hands on
that silver king; and, by gum, if I ever meet him, he won't
work no more holes nor any more skin games neither."
With this the two travellers relapsed into silence ; both of
them had painful memories of Mexico. How often during
my travels had I encountered the "man with the scheme,"
but how little had I imagined that I should ever gaze upon
one of his victims.

Later in the day, after winding for miles between the bar-
ren mountains, the train at last reached the large and im-
portant city of Monterey, situated in a beautiful valley at
an altitude of fifteen hundred feet, and having a much bet-
ter climate than many places farther south. Outside the
station was the now familiar street-car with its two mules,
still undisplaced by electrical traction, and the usual num-
ber of coches. One of the latter took me to a hotel in the
middle of the town, which is nearly a mile from the railway,
passing along some dusty roads lined with shed-like dwell-
ings of tinted stucco, which give a stranger a very unfavor-
able first impression of the city. From this unattractive
highway there was a sudden transition into the town itself,
where there were good, substantial business buildings in
the somewhat narrow streets, some smart shops and here
and there a fine old Spanish church.

418 MEXICO

Monterey has a population of over sixty thousand, and
being so close to the United States is becoming rapidly
Americanized. Large numbers of Americans are living in
and around the city, and a great deal of American and
Canadian capital has been invested there. In strolling
about the streets, I noticed signs of Americanization every-
where, the stores, for instance, having their announce-
ments in English as well as Spanish; and at some of the
street corners boys were selling a bright, well-edited Amer-
ican daily newspaper, the Monterey News. The city is the
capital of the State of Nuevo Leon, and was founded in
1560. Of late years it has become an important manu-
facturing place; there are large iron mines not far dis-
tant, and half a dozen large smelters are in operation,
where lead and silver are extracted from other ores. On
the outskirts of the city are several big breweries, which
manufacture the popular Monterey lager beer. As an
offset to the beer, the city also does a large business in
mineral water, which comes from the Topo Chico springs
a few miles out ; this has a great medicinal reputation and
is sold all over the country.

Monterey is famous for having been the scene of an im-
portant battle in our war with Mexico in 1846, when, after a
desperate, stubbornly disputed conflict lasting several days,
General Taylor defeated a large force of Mexicans under
General Ampudia. The old palace of the bishops of Mon-
terey, now a picturesque ruin, standing on a hill near the
town, was fortified by the Mexicans, and was the scene of
fierce fighting. During the assault of the city the contest
raged in the streets, the Mexican soldiers occupying the
houses and shooting down the Americans from the windows
and roofs.

While I was in the city, I accepted an invitation to ac-
company an American friend on a visit to one of the large

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 419

ranches in the State of Coahuila, in which part of the coun-
try some of the largest Mexican estates are situated. Some
of the ranches there have an area of two or three hundred
miles and are over seventy miles wide. Much of the coun-
try is an undulating plain, with a sandy soil, covered with
scrubby bushes, coarse grass and cactus.

A hot, dusty railway journey, which consumed the greater
part of a day, took us to a small wayside station, where a
peon awaited us with two horses. A ride of several miles
brought us to the ranch. We spent the night at the ranch
house, a small building of stuccoed adobe, which served
as the headquarters of the manager of the estate. Early
the next morning, after a good breakfast prepared by the
Mexican cook, we again mounted our horses, and guided by
one of the cowboys, an American, we rode about fifteen
miles across the plain to a camp where a round-up was
to take place.

Once a year every ranch has its round-up, when the
cattle are collected and the unmarked yearlings or calves
of a year old are branded, the work usually taking about a
fortnight. During this interval the cowboys scour the range,
gathering the bunches of cattle together and driving them
towards one central point, where there is a huge stockade or
corral. Towards the end of the drive there are oftentimes
exciting scenes, many of the wilder animals galloping off
and being brought back after a long chase. Occasionally
a bull turns and charges on one of the cowboys, but although
a horse is sometimes killed, the rider usually escapes. At
night, too, a herd will sometimes stampede through fright
and run for miles, some of the animals being killed in the
mad flight.

On the way to the camp I chatted with our companion,
the cowboy, a picturesque-looking fellow who wore a big
straw sombrero, a blue shirt, a bright red handkerchief

420 MEXICO

about his neck, while his legs were encased in skin-tight
leather trousers, a protection against the thorns which
abound in the low scrub. Around his waist was a well-
filled cartridge belt holding a big revolver. It was a glo-
rious morning, with a clear blue sky overhead and a mild
though invigorating breeze was blowing over the great plain,
which stretched for miles to a sky-line of rugged mountains.

"This is a great country," I remarked, but our cow-
puncher was vigorously chewing a piece of plug tobacco
and did not reply immediately. He then remarked:
"Good enough for them that likes it, but I prefer God's
country for mine."

"You would rather be back in Texas," I observed.
"That's about it, Colonel," was the reply, "there's no for-
tune for a ranch hand in this part of the world." He then
went on to tell me that, like many another young American,
he had drifted down into Mexico in search of adventure,
had got stranded, and had been obliged to take the first
thing that offered in the shape of work. Cowboys on Mex-
ican ranches, so he informed me, were supplied with a horse
and saddle, paid five dollars a month and provided with
food and lodging. In Texas he had earned about thirty dol-
lars a month and his board. He was now practically a pris-
oner, as it was hard to save money, and Texas was a long
way off. It was therefore not surprising that he sighed
for God's country. Aside from his scanty wages, however,
he found no fault with the work, having always done hard
manual labor. I gathered from him that it was different
with a good many young Americans of the better class, and
quite a few young Englishmen who became stranded in
Mexico and found themselves in the same position that he
was in. "These tenderfeet come down here," he remarked,
"expecting to find a sort of Wild West Show. Perhaps
it's all very funny at first, but that soon wears off, and they

IN NOETHEEN MEXICO 421

find that ranching is a pretty hard life. We start work
before sun-up and keep going until dark, and when a fellow
has been riding miles over the range, chasing cattle all day,
all he feels fit for at night is to eat his grub and turn in."

When we arrived at the camp, a large herd of cattle
had just been driven into the corral by a party of cowboys
or vaqueros, most of them swarthy Mexicans, with much
shouting and yelling, the place being enveloped in clouds
of dust. On holidays and other special occasions some of
these vaqueros appear in gorgeous trappings on which all
their savings are spent. Their jackets, sombreros and sad-
dle blankets are heavily laced with gold tinsel, and they
wear high boots and leather accoutrements of the finest
quality. Wonderful feats of horsemanship and lassoing are
exhibited by some of them.

After the cattle had been corralled, the calves or yearlings
were separated from the herd and driven into a smaller
enclosure, where several men were stationed with long
branding-irons bearing the mark of the ranch. These were
made almost red-hot in a blazing fire. One after another
the yearlings were dexterously lassoed, thrown down and
then held by two of the vaqueros, sometimes only after a
hard struggle. The branding iron was immediately applied,
burning off the hair and leaving the imprint on the skin.
A peculiar clip was also given to the ear of each animal, which
enables the ownership to be proved whenever they get
mixed with herds belonging to another ranch. It took
nearly all day to brand the yearlings in the corral; they
were then turned loose with the rest of the herd, which was
allowed to return to its feeding-grounds. The same process
is repeated until all the cattle have been rounded up and
branded.

If it were not for its monotony, there would be much
worse modes of life than that on a Coahuila ranch. The

422 MEXICO

country is wonderfully healthy, the climate resembling that
of the southern part of the United States, but without
the extremes of heat and cold which are experienced there.
In the winter months the weather is quite bracing, and warm
clothing is essential, especially when a "norther" swoops
down through the country. I was. there early in April, at
which time the weather is almost perfection.

Since the great prairie lands of the United States, which
once supported immense herds of cattle, have almost dis-
appeared, the Mexican ranches have begun to attract much
more attention, and a large amount of American capital
is being invested in them. As feeding grounds for cattle,
the Mexican ranges do not compare with the prairies, such,
for instance, as formerly existed in Texas and the Indian
Territory (now Oklahoma). Instead of the long, luscious
prairie grass on which the American herds fattened, the
Mexican cattle have to browse on coarse grass, weeds and
even cactus, which they devour in spite of the prickles. In
times of drought, when water and fodder are scarce, the
peons sometimes gather quantities of prickly pear and par-
tially burn off the sharp spikes, the broad, flat leaves, which
are very juicy, being ravenously eaten by the cattle. Owing
to the poor grazing which the Mexican ranges afford, it is
estimated that about fifteen acres is required to support each
animal, so that about one hundred and fifty thousand acres
is needed for ten thousand head of cattle. This serves to ex-
plain the reason for the enormous extent of the great ranches.

Next to the question of food, the supply of water is of
supreme importance in a country where streams are scarce
and there is a long dry season. On most ranches the bulk
of the water-supply is obtained from wells, the water being
raised by means of windmills. It is oftentimes a long
distance from the feeding grounds to the water, and in
times of drought large numbers of cattle perish.

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 423

The native Mexican cattle have much the same look as
the Spanish breeds, with long, wide, curving horns, but are
not of much value as meat-producers. They cost about
$5 each. Of foreign cattle the Swiss and Holland breeds
seem to thrive best on the Mexican ranges, and these are
being successfully crossed with the native stock.

On the ranch which we visited there were over a thou-
sand head of horses, most of them small, bony, wiry animals,
which hardly fetch $3 in the market. There was, however,
some fine-looking stock, the result of crossing the native
English and French breeds. On some of the ranches from
ten to twenty thousand horses find pasturage, and for
breeding purposes are divided into bunches of fifty or more,
according to their color, browns, roans, grays, etc., so as
to secure uniformity in the stock. After being kept to-
gether for some time, these bunches never become mixed
with each other, but when roaming over the range each
keeps to itself.

In addition to cattle and horses, goats are popular species
of live stock on Mexican ranches, herds of five and ten thou-
sand being quite common. Goats are very profitable, as
a rule, requiring very little attention, and thriving on the
poorest pasturage. Goats' flesh is much eaten by the poorer
classes in Mexico, and there is always a good market for
the skins.

We passed a pleasant night at the camp, where sleeping
quarters were provided in two or three large tents. Out
in the open, fires were kindled by the Mexican cooks, who,
with the aid of sundry pans and skillets prepared a very
appetizing supper for the hungry ranchmen. There was
fried beef, pork and beans, freshly baked hardtack and
coffee. Later in the evening, in honor of our visit, a flask
of rye whiskey was produced from some place of conceal-
ment, and a homoeopathic quantity subtracted by each of us.

424 • MEXICO

As we sat round the fire enjoying a smoke, the scene was
delightfully picturesque. Above, in the clearest of skies,
was the bright moon and a blaze of stars, which lighted the
great plain stretching for miles to the westward. One of
a party of Mexicans who were squatting together a short
distance away produced an old mandolin, and to the accom-
paniment of this his companions joined in singing one of
those plaintive Spanish songs which seem to strangely
harmonize with the life of Mexico. Stirred into activity
by this burst of song, some coyotes or prairie wolves not
far off set up a dismal howling, to which some of the dogs
in the camp replied in wonderful imitation. In this part
of the country there are not only coyotes but lynx, puma,
and cinnamon bears, affording excellent sport for those who
are handy with a rifle.

During the evening I entered into conversation with
the ranch foreman, a very intelligent Mexican, who had
been employed on one of the great ranches of northern
Mexico, much larger in extent than the average American
county. I had some curiosity to learn how these great
estates are managed. He informed me that this particular
estate was. divided into farms of from one thousand to
twenty-five hundred acres each, a foreman being placed
in charge of each farm and managing it independently.
Machinery, tools, horses, mules, wagons and money for
the peons was furnished to each foreman. At certain parts
of the estate there were general stores where the peons
could obtain their food, clothing and other requisites on
credit. Most of them remained in debt to the stores, and
never saw any of the money representing their wages. In
some cases an entire village would be in this condition of
indebtedness. On this estate there were three thousand
peons, who, with their families, made a total population of
ten thousand.

IN NORTHERN MEXICO 425

Although the country seems very barren when viewed
from the railway, and the ranges seem to afford very scanty
subsistence for the cattle, Coahuila is nevertheless one of
the richest agricultural States in Mexico. The soil in many
places is wonderfully fertile, yielding large crops of wheat,
cotton, sugar-cane and maize. Grapes are now being grown
to some extent, and an excellent quality of wine has been
produced, superior in some respects to that of California.
There are also great orchards of such fruits as apples, pears
and quince. As Coahuila is just below the boundary of
the United States, and railway connections are steadily
improving, it offers many attractions to settlers. Large
numbers of Americans with capital are coming into this
part of Mexico. One of the Coahuila towns, Torreon, which
was until recently a small Indian village, has now a large
American population and has been transformed into a
thriving, busy place, with substantial buildings of brick
and stone, equipped with electric light, telephones and
other modern accessories.

My visit to this interesting State was a fitting close to
my Mexican travels. Here, as in other parts of the Repub-
lic, I found the same development of resources in progress,
the same inrush of new methods, the awakening of the
people and the steady Americanization of the land. Here,
too, I found that touch of the picturesque which makes
Mexico, with all her faults, so fascinating to the stranger
within her gates ; for the deep blue, cloudless sky, the vast
herds of cattle and the galloping vaqueros are things to be
remembered for many a day.

The next morning I rode with my companion back to the
railway, and a few hours later was again on the train return-
ing to Monterey, with its busy streets and hum of life.
Two days afterwards I boarded the St. Louis express once
more and resumed my journey northwards.

• MEXICO

It is 166 miles from Monterey to Nuevo Laredo on the
Rio Grande River, which divides Mexico from the United
States. The scenery for half the distance continues of the
same arid description, dry valleys, with cactus and scrubby
vegetation, and low, barren, sun-baked hills. Then comes
a wide plain, stretching to the horizon, a desolate region,
with the same scrubby bushes and dry, yellow grass.
Travellers coming from the North get a very bad impression
of the country in the dry season. I have heard people
who have been in Texas and have gone down a few miles
over the border into Mexico, denouncing the country as a
perfect desert. They have simply seen a few leagues of
these barren plains and sun-baked hills and call that " see-
ing Mexico."

At the little station of Nuevo Laredo I bade farewell,
with many regrets, to old Mexico. There was a halt of
a few minutes here and a cursory examination of baggage.
It appeared that some serious robberies had recently oc-
curred in the capital, and the police, thinking that the
thieves might be attempting to leave the country with their
plunder, had ordered a search to be made for suspicious
persons and baggage at Vera Cruz and Tampico and at all
railway stations along the American border. I exchanged
a few words with the polite old customs officer, who, with
his bronzed, bearded face and military bearing, might have
stepped from a canvas by Velasquez. As I got on the
train, which was already moving, he lifted his hat, and
with graceful courtesy said, "Adios, senor, vaya usted
con Dios."

The sun was slowly sinking over the reddish hills of Mex-
ico as our train steamed over the long steel bridge spanning
the wide, shallow Rio Grande River, to the bustling town
of Laredo, Texas. Looking backwards, I could see the
little station, with its group of drowsy peons loafing outside.

J2V NORTHERN MEXICO 427

while above it the red, white and green flag of Mexico
floated idly in the evening breeze. Back there, beyond the
miles of barren mountains and plains were the everlasting
hills tipped with snow, overlooking many a quaint old town,
with its ancient churches and its sunny plazas bright with
a wealth of flowers, where a kindly though slowly progress-
ing people were still living the life of the past. Back there,
at least, the picturesque still survived; but was it to be
soon obliterated by the prosaic American invasion?

As if in answer to this question, a sharp, businesslike
voice greeted my ear. "All the latest books and papers —
San Antonio Express, St. Louis and Chicago papers.
Here's all of 'em." We had reached the American side of
the river, and a hustling news-vendor had boarded the train
with a fresh supply of literature. At the same moment
another brisk voice broke in with, " Laredo ; all passengers
out for customs examination. Please step lively." Some
local celebration happened to be in progress, and the station
was decorated with masses of American flags. Just as I
left the train, a brass band blared forth "Hail, Columbia,"
and a crowd of enthusiastic citizens rent the air with ear-
piercing cheers.

Here was Laredo, the outpost of the United States,
with its energy, its push, and its inspiring patriotism ; and
there, across that wide, shallow river was Mexico, the old,
the romantic, the picturesque, slowly but surely awakening
into new life through the oncoming host of American in-
vaders.

CHAPTER XXVIII

MEXICAN PKOBLEMS OF TO-DAY

IN the previous chapters, which were originally written
before the downfall of the Diaz government, the author has
endeavored to give an accurate description of Mexico as it
appeared at that time. The country was then peaceful
and prosperous, and even in its remotest parts life and
property were protected by the strong arm of the law.

To-day, some of the northern states are under the
control of revolutionists, and in Sonora, Chihuahua,
Coahuila, Durango, Sinaloa, Nuevo Leon, and Tamaulipas
marauding bands have excited terror far and wide. The
once prosperous cities of Durango, Chihuahua and Torreon
have been partly destroyed and thousands of refugees have
fled across the border. Tampico, once famous for its tar-
pon fishing, is now better known as the scene of some
fiercely contested battles between Federalists and revolu-
tionists. Nuevo Laredo, a peaceful spot when the pre-
ceding chapter was written, has also witnessed some
desperate fighting.

In spite of the successes of the revolutionists, however, it
would be a mistake to suppose that the whole of Mexico
has been in a state of disorder. Newspaper reports, it is
true, have tended to give this impression; but the fact
really is that the revolutionary uprisings have been confined,
almost exclusively, to the northern provinces far from the
capital. The city of Durango, for example, is over seven
hundred miles from Mexico City. And even in these
northern states the Federal troops, stationed at important

428

THE MEXICAN SITUATION 429

points, have been able to withstand the attacks of the
revolutionists. In the south the only revolutionary
movement of any importance has been headed by the bandit
chief, Emiliano Zapata, who has terrorized certain parts of
Morelos and Guerrero, while other bands of brigands have
committed depredations near the ancient port of Acapulco.
The mountainous character of that part of Mexico (see
page 233) has made it extremely difficult for the government
forces to suppress the Zapatistas. Yet with this exception
southern Mexico has remained perfectly tranquil ; while
in the capital and such cities as Guadalajara, Guanajuato,
Puebla and Oaxaca business has proceeded without any
serious check.

The remarkable contrast afforded by conditions in the
north and south is to be largely explained by the varied
character of the Indian laboring population. As mentioned
in Chapter X, great differences exist between the Indian
races in various parts of the Republic. Some of the Indian
peons, found chiefly in the southern states, are descendants
of tribes which were engaged in agriculture at the time of
the Spanish conquest. Such Indians are intelligent and
peaceable, and are capable of making great improvement.
On the other hand, there are some Indians who bear a close
resemblance to the degenerate specimens to be seen in
Arizona, — dirty, ignorant, and impossible to improve.
Over two millions of the Mexican Indians are unable to
speak Spanish, although living in the midst of Spanish-
speaking communities. Only a small proportion of the
Indian population can read and write.

In the north large numbers of the peons are descended
from fierce tribes somewhat akin to the American Apaches,
but having a slight infusion of degenerate Spanish blood.
Their development and advancement have been hindered
by their inheritance of certain savage traits. To this class

430 MEXICO

belong the typical Mexican "greasers," so numerous in the
northern states just below the American border. Many of
these Mexicans have lived in Texas, Arizona or New Mexico,
employed as farm hands or railroad laborers ; some of them
were born in the border states. Mexicans of this class
are very different from the peons living further south.
Having become slightly Americanized, they are more diffi-
cult to manage than the other native laborers ; they demand
higher wages, and are dissatisfied with present conditions
in Mexico. Incidentally, this serves to explain why revo-
lutions have recently made such rapid headway in the north.

In a previous chapter the author has described the
peonage system, which has existed for ages in Mexico. He
has also explained how this system, which has practically
amounted to slavery, has tended to degrade and brutalize
the Indian population. It may be added that the ignorance
and superstition of the average peon are almost beyond
belief. He will, for instance, make a long pilgrimage
to some holy shrine for the purpose of increasing his luck
in a lottery or success in killing an enemy. His religion is
oftentimes strangely blended with the grossest paganism.
Temperamentally, he displays the most amazing contrasts.
While he will invariably treat his children with the greatest
tenderness, he will seldom show any kindness to dependent
animals, and will callously beat and starve his horse or
burro. At peace he will share his last tortilla with a friend
and will risk his life for his employer. As a revolutionist
he becomes transformed into the embodiment of lust and
ferocity. He will then take delight in outraging women and
slaughtering defenceless prisoners. While this description
applies more especially to the peons of the north, similar
traits are to be found among the great mass of Indians in
other parts of Mexico.

As a rule the peons respect no government that they do

THE MEXICAN SITUATION 431

not fear ; but when kept in order by a strong hand most of
them are quiet, inoffensive working people with wants so
simple that they will toil for very low wages. Curiously
enough, if paid much in excess of what they want it does
not improve their condition. The extra money is spent for
pulque, mescal and other intoxicants and results in fewer
working days. Thousands in the north have no other
earthly possessions than their ragged clothes and tattered
blankets. They are ignorant, dirty, immoral, and are savages
at heart. Having nothing at stake in the country, they are
ready to join in any revolution, regardless of its object.

Of the fifteen million Mexicans less than half a million are
real whites, pure Indians or mixtures of some kind forming
the bulk of the population. The mestizos or mixed bloods,
who may be regarded as the typical Mexicans of to-day,
constitute about 43 per cent of the population. To this
mixed class belong certain grades of professional men, and
also the better types of the working population, such as
clerks and mechanics. From this class are drawn the great
majority of Mexican voters, for, as already mentioned, the
suffrage, in practice, is strictly limited. In fact, it is said
that of the fifteen million Mexicans less than twenty thou-
sand ever cast ballots. It may be added that, according to
the last census, there were over sixty thousand foreigners
resident hi Mexico — Spaniards, Americans, French, and
English predominating.

Between the Indian laborer and the intelligent, educated
Mexican of the upper classes there is almost the same
difference as exists between the whites and the colored popu-
lation in South Africa. It would indeed be difficult to
define exactly what constitutes the middle class. The fact
is, that the Mexican people have always been divided into
two classes, the upper and the lower. A middle class, such
as in Europe or the United States forms a solid strata of

432 • MEXICO

intelligent citizenship, tends but slowly to appear in Mexico.
There is, however, a small middle class of petty landowners,
of meagre intelligence and somewhat dissatisfied with pre-
vailing conditions. From this class is usually recruited the
bandit chiefs and leaders of revolutions.

The well-to-do Mexicans are strangely apathetic, and
until recently have been seldom willing to make any sacri-
fices for their country. As explained in Chapter IX, a
Mexican of the higher class has usually but one ambition,
namely, to enter political life and obtain some well-paid
appointment. Almost every man of this type thinks that
he ought to be President, and is firmly convinced that he
is the only man who can save the country by filling that
important office. To become President such men have
been ready to arm savages and to fight their way to power.
As long as his own interests are not affected, the average
upper-class Mexican is indifferent to what his fellow-citizens
elsewhere may be enduring ; he will not serve in the army ;
he is utterly helpless, and he expects the government to do
almost everything for him.

As the result of the recent outrages of revolutionists, how-
ever, a civic spirit has at last been aroused among Mexicans
of the upper class. At the present time they are not only
subscribing large sums of money for the support of the
national government, but the younger men are forming
social defence associations to protect the country against
the devastation of bandits.

When the character of the Mexican people is considered,
the government of Diaz seems to have been all the more
wonderful. While it is true that it eventually became cor-
rupt, yet for thirty years it gave the country freedom from
revolutions and an opportunity to make some progress.
As already observed, the events that have happened since
the retirement of General Diaz have furnished conclusive

THE MEXICAN SITUATION 433

evidence that Mexico is unfitted to be a republic in the ordi-
nary sense of the term. In fact, the great mass of Indian
peons would be utterly unable to understand the meaning
of a ballot or to make any use of it.

The truth is that what Mexico needs is a strong central
government headed by such a man as Lord Kitchener, one
of unblemished record, a soldier, statesman and adminis-
trator; and what Lord Kitchener accomplished in Egypt
might, to a great extent, be brought about in Mexico. But
as a Kitchener is not to be found in Mexico to-day, the place
must needs be filled by a Mexican substitute — a man of
strong character, who understands his countrymen, who
has the confidence of the army and is able to restore order.
It is clear that the first step towards the future betterment
of the people must be the suppression of the present insur-
rections and the establishment of peace.

As to the causes of the various revolutionary outbreaks
in Mexico several explanations have been given. It has
been asserted, for instance, that they were the direct
result of the rivalries of the British and American oil inter-
ests in their struggle for control of the Mexican oil proper-
ties. One interest has been accused of supporting the revo-
lutionists ; the other has been charged with upholding the
Huerta government in order to gain valuable concessions.
As a recent writer has observed, "the whcle Mexican situa-
tion has reeked with crude petroleum."

While certain oil interests may possibly have assisted in
fomenting the present revolutions, it seems more probable
that their principal cause was the spread of distorted social-
istic ideas among the laboring population of northern
Mexico. It is in the north that most of the vast private
estates exist, while in southern Mexico, to a large extent,
the land has been divided among small owners. The
revolutionists in the north are insisting that the great

434 MEXICO

haciendas (described in pages 325-404) must be divided
among the laboring population. This doctrine, it will be
recalled, formed part of the programme of the late President
Madero ; but his theories of land ownership were like his
ideas on universal suffrage, far in advance of his time. His
downfall, in fact, was largely due to his inability to put
these theories into practice.

As a matter of fact, a division of land would not solve the
Mexican problem. Generally speaking, land in northern
Mexico corresponds to what has been described in Chapter
XXVII. That part of the country abounds in arid, cactus-
strewn deserts, which, however, become remarkably fertile
wherever irrigation is introduced. Under present condi-
tions it would be impossible for squatters to live on this land
unless the government, first of all, irrigated it at enormous
expense. It would then be necessary to provide these
native settlers with agricultural implements and the means
of subsistence until they became self-supporting. Further-
more, owing to their idleness, improvidence and utter lack
of agricultural training, the present race of Indian peons
could not possibly become successful farmers. Thus far it
has been only the wealthy landowners who could afford to
irrigate, although it is true that in 1908 (see page 410)
President Diaz's government spent a large amount of money
for irrigation work. While this, however, resulted in
benefit to the well-to-do hacendados, it failed in its object
of promoting small ownership. The solution of this
problem is one that would tax the resources of even a
Kitchener; and it remains to be seen whether any Mexi-
can statesman will be equal to the task.

Mexico, it may be added, would be vastly improved if
there could be a great influx of European immigration, with
a resulting admixture of new blood. The beneficial effects
of such immigration, as witnessed in Argentina and other

THE MEXICAN SITUATION 435

South American republics, might be experienced by Mexico
if extensive immigration were only possible. But, unfor-
tunately, Mexico is not a poor man's country in the same
sense as Canada and certain other countries. As a rule,
large capital is required to develop Mexican land properly,
and, moreover, owing to the miserable wages for which the
Indian peons are willing to work, white manual laborers
could not make a decent living in Mexico. This consti-
tutes a serious problem, because without immigration,
the introduction of new blood, and a consequent improve-
ment of the population, it will be difficult for Mexico to
make any rapid advance.

During the recent reigns of terror in Mexico various
proposals have been made for suppressing disorder and
establishing a stable government. It has been suggested
that the United States should intervene with this object
in view, while a few newspapers have even hinted that not
only should there be intervention, but its ultimate aim
should be the annexation of the northern Mexican states.
Certain writers have argued that this is the only practical
means of putting an end to the incessant disorder in that
part of Mexico. The suggestion has also been made that
the European powers having extensive interests in the
country should join the United States in intervening, and
that an allied army should occupy Mexico City.

As to the intervention of the United States, so much
discussed, it is realized that the destruction of foreign
property or the killing of foreigners by the Mexican revo-
lutionists would probably result in an American army being
sent across the border. Widely different views have been
expressed concerning the probable results of such a proceed-
ing. Some writers, whose opinions are entitled to considera-
tion, are convinced that Mexico's fighting strength has been
greatly over-estimated, and that a small but efficient Ameri-

436 MEXICO

can army could take possession of the country and establish
order. There is, however, a far greater weight of opinion
against intervention ; and most people who know Mexico
are fervently hoping that such a step will never become
necessary. Intervention would probably mean that the
Mexicans would stop fighting among themselves and unite
to repel invasion. As the revolutionists have done, they
would ignore the rules of civilized warfare ; and, furthermore,
owing to the mountainous character of the country, and
the vast stretches of desert, it would be extremely difficult
to conduct a successful campaign.

Certain military authorities have asserted that an
invasion of Mexico would be simply a repetition of the Boer
war on a much larger scale. They have estimated that an
army of 250,000 would be required, and that the casualties
from death, disease and desertion would be enormous.
In their opinion, the war, while it lasted, would cost the
United States about a million dollars a day, and that a
future expenditure of eight hundred millions would be
required for pensions. To maintain order in Mexico they
believe that an army of 400,000 would be needed, and that
guerilla warfare would continue for a generation. Even
the annexation of northern Mexico and the development of
its agriculture and minerals would hardly repay the costs
of conquest.

The opponents of intervention have also pointed out that
any invasion of Mexico would be deeply resented by the
South Americans who are racially in sympathy with the
Mexicans. At the present time, every move of the United
States in connection with the Mexican situation is being
watched with the keenest interest by the southern republics.
Those who are interested in the development of American
commerce in South America, and the incentive it should
receive from the completion of the Panama Canal, are

THE MEXICAN SITUATION 437

anxious, therefore, that nothing should occur to excite
South American ill will.

It is the belief of those best qualified to express an
opinion that a grave mistake was made by the United
States government in failing to recognize the provisional
administration of President Huerta. The withholding of
such recognition not only prevented his government from
raising funds abroad, but impeded the work of the
national army in restoring peace, and thus tended to
give support to the forces of savagery and lawlessness.
While it is true that objections were raised to the tem-
porary dictatorship of General Huerta, it is also true
that during the turbulent period following the downfall
of the Madero government Mexico needed a dictator.
Moreover it is probable that had the Huerta administra-
tion obtained recognition from the United States at the
outset peace might have been speedily re-established.

Every man in Mexico having any property at stake
has realized that whatever its shortcomings might have
been, the Huerta government, at least, constituted the
only power in Mexico representing civilization, law and
order. This fact was recognized when the substantial
citizens of Mexico, within one month, raised over twenty
million dollars for the support of the government, while
the bulk of the Mexican army, in spite of hardships and
insufficient pay, remained loyal. There were ample
reasons for this support of General Huerta. It was, in
fact, easy to foresee that a succession of revolutionist
victories and the capture of the capital would result in
summary vengeance being taken upon General Huerta
and his supporters, including a general massacre of the
Federal officers, followed by wholesale looting in which
Zapata and other bandits would demand their shj
eventually disputes would arise between the revolul

438 MEXICO

ists which would end in their fighting among themselves ;
anarchy would reign and Mexico City would probably be
destroyed. It was on this account that the European
representatives were unanimous in recognizing the Huerta
government.1

While it is impossible to forecast, with any degree of
certainty, what is likely to happen in Mexico, there is
however, a strong reason for believing that intervention
by the United States, although undesirable, is by no
means impossible. Certain European governments hav-
ing important interests in Mexico are disposed to look to
the United States for remedial measures of some kind,
especially in view of the destruction of foreign property
by revolutionists and the heavy losses incurred by holders
of Mexican bonds. Having refused to recognized the
Huerta government, the United States, it is contended, is
morally responsible for the disasters that have followed.

The unexpected, of course, may happen in Mexico;
but as events are now shaping themselves it would seem
that the possibility of intervention by the United States
has constantly become greater. Intervention, no matter
how benevolent its intention might be, would however
inevitably mean war with Mexico, with all its serious
consequences. And it is on this account that, excepting
as an extreme necessity, intervention is strongly opposed
by sober and intelligent American public opinion.

1 The Japanese government was foremost in recognizing General
Huerta's administration. Japanese sympathy was also strongly
emphasized during the visit of Sefior de la Barra to Tokio on a confi-
dential mission, although it was officially announced that his object
was simply to thank the Japanse government for having participated
in the Mexican Centennial. Sefior de la Barra received an enthusi-
astic reception in Tokio, where he was presented with a sword and
other gifts, and had distinguished honors conferred upon him by the
Emperor. At a mass meeting resolutions of sympathy with Mexico
were adopted, while American discrimination against the Japanese
was bitterly denounced.

INDEX

Adobe houses, 40.

Advertisements, Mexico City, 64.

Agriculture, on haciendas in Cuautla,
322-326, 329-330; in the hot
lands, 385-386; in northern
Mexico, 410, 425.

Aguadores, 34, 99.

Aguas Calientes, 407.

Ajusco, Mount, 221.

Alameda, the, Mexico City, 48-49.

Alban, Monte, ruins on, 300-302.

Alvarado, Pedro, peon millionaire,
365-366.

Ambassadors, Hall of, National
Palace, 90.

Amecameca, town of, 328, 330-331 ;
sacred mountain and Passion
Play at, 335-336.

Americanization of Mexico, 176.

American quarter, Mexico City, 171,
182.

Americans, in Mexico City, 59-60;
invasion of Mexico by tourists,
and their characteristics, 170-
173; good feeling between Eng-
lish residents and, 173; pro-
moters of "schemes," 173-174;
Mexican feeling against, 174-
175; called "gringos," 175;
capital invested by, 175, 297;
at Cuernavaca, 227; at Puebla,
244; at Oaxaca, 265-266, 298;
at Cuautla, 318; at Guadalajara,
343; in northern Mexico, 408,
425.

Amusements, public, Mexico City,
130-131.

Animals, blessing of the, 155-156.

Annexation, possibility of, 176.

Apam, plains of, 40, 44.

Aqueduct, remains of, Mexico City,
99.

Arcade Hotel, Puebla, 238.

Archaeological researches, 301, 308.

Armor, exhibit of, Mexico City, 91.

Arms of Mexico, 210.

Army, system of education in, 149;
training of officers, statistics
concerning, etc., 217-218.

Art, specimens of, National Museum,
Mexico City, 93; in church
buildings, 114; works of, in
churches, 246-247; Murillo's
"Assumption," Guadalajara,
342; Titian's "Entombment of
Christ," 372-375.

Artists, prominent, 128.

Art students, public assistance of,
128.

Atequiza, village of, 349.

Atlacomulco, hacienda of, 225.

Australian sheep in Chihuahua, 410.

Automobile roads, 129, 220-221.

Automobiles, Mexico City, 103, 105,
129.

Aztecs, history of tribe of, 71-77;
descendants of the, 184-185;
remains of, about Cuernavaca,
230-231.

Baird, W. H., 272-278.
Ball-playing, Mexican, 291, 292.
Banana raising, 383, 385, 405.
Baronial estates, 322-325, 350, 404,

414.
Barranca, the, at Cuernavaca, 228;

at Guadalajara, 347.
Bathing, compulsory, 137.
Beans, as staple food, 32.
"Bear, playing the," 161-165, 327;

Young America's views on, 363.
Beggars, 15-16, 40, 109, 227; in

Mexico City, 66; check placed

on, under Diaz regime, 213.

439

440

• INDEX

Blake, W. W., researches of, 92.
Blessing of the animals, custom of,

155-156.

Borda, Jose de la, 225-226.
Borda Garden and mansion, 225-227.
Bosque, park in Mexico City, 102.
Boulevard, Mexico City, 99-100.
Breweries, 129, 418.
Brigandage, extinction of, 203-204.
British in Mexico, 177-178, 276-277.

See English.

British Club, Mexico City, 183.
Buena Vista, battle of, 415.
Bull-fights, Mexico City, 105-106.
Burden-bearers, Mexican, 4-5, 45.
Burial customs, 154, 360-361.

Cabs (caches), 20, 45-46.
Cacahuamilpa, caves of, 231-233.
Cacti, Mexican, 256-257; fibre-pro-
ducing qualities of, 330.
Cafe's, Vera Cruz, 6; Mexico City,

139.

Calendar Stone, Aztec, 92.
Calle Cinco de Mayo, Mexico City,

60.

Calle San Francisco, Mexico City, 62.
Campeche, State of, 383.
Canada, large interests of, in Mexico,

178.

Canons. See Barranca.
Capital, foreign, in Mexico, 175,

206-207; opportunity for men

with small, 180-181.
Garden, Sir Lionel, 127.
Cargadores, 4-5, 45.
Carranza, General, 208.
Catacomb, at Guanajuato, 360-362.
Cathedral, Vera Cruz, 2,6; Orizaba,

25; Mexico City, 87; of San

Francisco, at Cuernavaca, 224;

Puebla, 240-241; Oaxaca, 264,

270; Guadalajara, 342.
Catholicism, tenacity of, 151-152.
Catorce, town of, 414-415.
Cattle, native and foreign, 423.
Caves of Cacahuamilpa, 231-233.
Ceremonial, tendency to, 132.
Chapala, town of, 350-352.
Chapala, Lake, 350, 351-354.

Chapalteco Indians, 354.
Chapultepec, military college at, 217.
Chapultepec, Castle of, Mexico City,

101.

Chapultepec Cafe", 103.
Charcoal, use of, Mexico City, 59.
Charles IV, statue of, Mexico City,

100.
Charnay, French archaeologist, 109-

110.

Cherubusco, Country Club at, 183.
Chihuahua, State of, 208, 404, 409, 410,
Children, education and training of.

126.
Chimneys, absence of, Mexico City,

58, 59.
Chinese, resemblance of Mexican

Indians to, 185-186.
Chinese club, Mexico City, 183.
Cholula, town of, 244-247.
Christian Science in Mexico, 153.
Christmas festivities, 242-244; at

Los Reyes, 290-294.
Church, governmental interference

with the, 151.
Church, the oldest, in America, 248.
Church of —

Jesus Maria, Mexico City, 113.
Jesus Nazareno, Mexico City, 111.
La Compania, Puebla, 241.
La Piedad, Mexico City, 116.
Nuestra Sefiora de los Angeles,

Mexico City, 112.
Nuestra Senora de los Remedies,

Cholula, 246-247.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, Guada-

lupe Hidalgo, 117-122.
Our Lady of Succor, Los Reme-
dies, 116.

San Cristobal, Puebla, 241.
San Diego, Mexico City, 49.
San Francisco, Jalapa, 397.
San Francisco, Puebla, 241.
San Francisco, Tlaxcala, 248.
San Francisco, Vera Cruz, 6.
San Hip61ito, Mexico City, 113.
Santa Cruz, Queretaro, 375.
Santa Domingo, Oaxaca, 270.
Santa Rosa, Queretaro, 375.
Santa Teresa, Orizaba, 25.

INDEX

441

Churches, at Orizaba, 25; Mexico
City, 111-115; Cuautla, 319;
Queretaro, 375.

Church-bell nuisance, 24, 152, 241.

Church pictures, 246-247, 342, 372.

Church property, state appropriation
of, 151, 319.

Cinematograph shows, 130, 241.

City of Churches, 236.

City of temples, a, 245.

Climate, 17-18, 53; in Mexico City,
50; of Guadalajara, 341-342.

Clothes, 20-22, 27-28; of priests,
25, 151; cost of peons', 33; ex-
pense of, 65; ladies', 168.

Clubs, foreign residents', 183.

Coahuila, State of, 404, 415 ff., 425;
a ranch in, 418-425.

Coal, small quantity of, produced,
369.

Cock-fighting, 191-192.

Coffee, Mexican, 142.

Coffee raising, 383, 405.

Colima, State of, 348.

Colima volcano, 348.

Columbus statue, Mexico City, 100.

Congress, the Federal, 210.

Contras, Jose Peon y, poet, 128.

Convent of San Francisco, at
Tzintzuntzan, 372.

Convolvulus, 223.

Copper mines, 369.

Cordier, Columbus statue by, 100.

Cordoba, town of, 14-16.

Corn, production of, 237; in hot
lands, 385.

Corral, Vice-President, 208.

Corte"s, 3, 19, 54, 87; conquest of
Mexico by, 74-79; absence of
monuments to, 100; death and
burial-place of, 111-112; traces
of, at Cuernavaca, 224-225 ; title
of Marquis of the Valley of
Oaxaca, 271.

Cosio, General, 208.

Cost of living, Mexico City, 136.

Cotton growing, northern Mexico,
410.

Country Club, Mexico City, 183.

Courtship, method of, 161.

Courts of law, 211 ff.

Creel, Ambassador, 180, 208.

Creelman, James, quoted, 202, 208-
209.

Criadors, 263.

Cuauhnahuac, 221.

Cuauhtemoc, Aztec prince, statue of,
100.

Cuautla, mineral springs and hacien-
das at, 314-327.

Cuernavaca, 219-230.

Curanderas, wise women, 311.

Currency, Mexican, 7.

Customs officials, Mexican and
American, 426, 427.

Dances, peons', at Christmas festivi-
ties, 293; of Zapotec Indians,
312-313.

Death-rate, Mexico City, 55.

Degollado theatre, Guadalajara, 343-
344.

Dentists, American, in Mexico, 23.

Devil Dance of Zapotec Indians,
312-313.

Diaz, Porfirio, defeats forces of
Maximilian, 84; becomes Presi-
dent of Mexico (1876), 85;
receptions held by, 90 ; residence
of, 91 ; disapproval of bull-fight-
ing by, 106; the President and
his wife as social leaders, 126 ; at
the Circo Teatro, 131; weekly
baths enforced by, 137; treat-
ment of newspaper editors, 143-
144; educational system in-
augurated by, 148-150; keen-
ness on religious toleration, 153 ;
administration (1876-1911), 194;
progress of country under, 196;
government attacked in Ameri-
can magazines, 197; re-election
opposed by Madero, 198; defects
of long dictatorship, 199; army
defeated by revolutionists, 200;
retirement from Mexico, 201.

Diaz, Felix, heads revolt against
Madero, 202; his followers sup-
port Huerta, 205.

' Dick, the Chinaman," 260.

442

INDEX

Diplomatic corps, Mexico City, 127.
Divorces, absence of, 158.
Drainage system, Mexico City, 54.
Drawnwork of Aguas Calientes, 407.
Dress, change in women's, to French

styles, 168. See Clothes.
Drinking, by Indians, 40-43, 193-

195.

Drinking-places, 6-7, 28.
Drinks in restaurants, 141.
Duck-shooting, Chapala, 353.
Duels, 164.
Durango, State and city of, 404, 408-

409.

Eating-places, Mexico City, 63, 138-
143.

Education, progress in, 148-150;
lack of, in women, 167; of In-
dians, 192; President Diaz on,
209.

Educational institutions, Mexico
City, 149.

Enchiladas, 140.

English customs, Mexico City, 125.

English in Mexico, 173; called
"Americans," 176; loss of first
place in trade in Mexico by, 177—
178; as mining men, 276-277.

"Entombment of Christ/' Titian's,
372-375.

Escandon, Senor Landa y, 126-127,
208.

Escandon mansion, Mexico City, 61.

Esperanza, town of, 38.

Estates, baronial (haciendas), 322-
325.

Executions, method pursued in,
216-217.

Exports of Mexico, 179.

Fair God legend, 69, 93.

Family life, 158.

Farming estates, 322-326, 350, 404,
414.

Farming in the hot lands, 382 ff.

Federal District, Mexico City, gov-
ernment of, 96-97.

Felipe, patron saint of Mexico City,
98-99.

Festival of Our Lady of Guadalupe,
117, 120.

Festivals, Christmas, 243-244.

Fibre plants, cultivation of, 326, 329-
330.

Fiestas, 189.

Fifth of May Street, Mexico City, 60.

Figueroa, General, 200.

Fishing, in Lake Chapala, 353; at
Tampico, 399-403.

Flirtations, 161-162.

Flores, Manuel, poet, 128.

Flower Market, Mexico City, 95.

Food, cost of, 136; in restaurants,
Mexico City, 138-141.

Foreigners in Mexico, 170 ff . ; capital
invested by, 175; Americans,
Spanish, French, Germans, Eng-
lish, and Canadians, 177-178;
influence exercised by children
of, 179-180 ; colonies and clubs
of, Mexico City, 182-183; min-
ing properties of, 272.

Foreign quarters, Mexico City, 181-
182.

Fortune-telling, 229.

French, occupation of Mexico by,
83-84; clubs of, Mexico City,
183.

French business men in Mexico, 177.

Frias family, 414.

Frijoles, 140.

Fruits, 141, 267, 383, 385, 405, 425.

Funeral customs, 154.

Funerals, street-cars used for, 97-98;
prevalence of Catholic rites in,
154.

Fuster, Alberto, artist, 128.

Gambling, 61, 65-66, 297-298; by

Indians, 191-192.
Game, land of the big, 381-382.
Games, Christmas, 242-244, 292-

293; gambling, 297-298 (see

Gambling).
Germans in Mexico, 177; affiliation

of, with Mexicans, 180 ; club and

club building of, Mexico City,

183.
Gillow, Archbishop, 270.

INDEX

443

Goat raising, 423.

Gold, undiscovered mines of, 368;

annual output of, 369.
Gold mining, 272-282; in State of

Jalisco, 348-349.
Government, autocracy of, 205-

206; machinery of, 210 ff.
Government Palace, Cuernavaca,

224.

Granadita, the, 32.
Graphite from Mexico, 369.
Grazing land, American vs. Mexican,

422.

"Greasers," 174.
"Gringos," 175.
Grocery stores, Spanish ownership

of, 298-299.
Guadalajara, 339-349.
Guadalajara ware, 346-347.
Guadalupe, festival of Our Lady of,

117, 120.
Guanajuato, the "silver city," 355-

367.

Guernsey, Frederick, 145.
Guerrero, President, 187.
Guerrero, ruins in, 233.

Haciendas, 322-326 ; near Guadala-
jara, 350; in San Luis Potosi,
406-407.

Hacienda system, an obstacle to
progress, 325.

Hall of Monoliths, Mitla, 306-310.

Health resorts, 249-257, 314-322,
407, 415.

Hearse-cars, 97-98, 154.

Heating of houses, 182.

Hemp trade, 329-330.

Henequen, growth of, 329-330.

Hermosillo, capital of Sonora, 413.

Hidalgo, Miguel, insurrection of, 79-
80, 90, 359.

Highwaymen, treatment of, 216-217.

Hill of the Frogs, Guanajuato called,
357.

Horse races, Mexico City, 130.

Horse raising, 423.

Hospicio, Guadalajara, 345-346.

Hotel de France, 23.

Hotel Diligencia, Vera Cruz, 395.

2r

Hotel Morelos, Cuautla, 317-318.

Hotels, Mexican, 23-24, 46-48; at
Orizaba, 23; at Cuernavaca, 223;
at Puebla, 238; at Tehuacan,
251-253 ; at Oaxaca, 262-263 ; at
Cuautla, 317-318; at Chapala,
351 ; at Vera Cruz, 395 ; at Tam-
pico, 400.

Hot lands, 233, 259-260, 380, 382-
393 ; products and great future
of, 383.

Hot springs, 407.

Housekeeping, absence of good, 166.

House of Tiles, Mexico City, 61.

Houses, Mexico City, 124; rental
of, 136; heating of, 183.

Huerta, General, leads Madero's
forces, 202, 203; enda anti-Ma-
dero revolt, 203; provisional
President, 205.

Idols, Aztec, 92-93.

Indian corn, 237; growth of, in hot
lands, 385.

India rubber, extraction of and pros-
pects for, 384-385.

India rubber plantations, 382, 384.

Indians, Mexican, 20-21, 22, 184-
429; politeness of, 133-134;
Yaqui, 185; resemblance of, to
Chinese and Japanese, 185-186;
Mayan, 186; numbers of, 187;
women of, 192-193 ; drink the
curse of, 193-195; bathing and
non-bathing habits of, 195 ; sto-
ries of stupidity of, 195-197; in
the army, 218; as pottery-mak-
ers, 228-229; of San Antone,
229; Yaqui, 411-414. See Ma-
yans, Yaquis, Zapotecs, etc.

Infant mortality, 193.

Influenza in Mexico, 314.

Intervention, United States, 435.

Investment, field for, in Mexico, 179.

Investments, opportunity for small,
180-181 ; grand total of foreign,
206-207.

Iripuato, town of, 355.

Iron deposits, 369.

Irrigation of land, 410.

444

INDEX

Isthmus of Tehuantepec, 378-393.

Iturbide, Augustin, career of, 80-81 ;
burial-place, 88.

Ixtaccihuatl, Mount, 102, 224;
shortening of name, by Ameri-
cans, 177; legend of, 332.

Ixtle, fibre-producing qualities of,
330.

Ixtlilxochitli, Indian poet, 127.

Izaguirre, Leandro, artist, 128.

Jaguar, country of the, 381-382.

Jalapa, city of, 395-397.

Jalisco, State of, 348.

Japanese, resemblance of Mexican

Indians to, 185-186; sympathy

for Mexico, 438.

Jiminez, Francisco, statue by, 100.
Jockey Club, Mexico City, 61.
Juarez, Benito, 82-85, 94, 187.

Kansas City, Mexican and Orient
Railway, 409.

La Cima, 220.

Lakes, about Mexico City, 53 ; Cha-

pala and Patzcuaro, 350, 351-

354, 370-371.
Language, the Spanish, as spoken in

Mexico, 128-129.
La Trinidad mine, 367.
Law courts, 211 ff.
Lead deposits, 369.
Legends of miracles, 115-119.
Lerma River, 352.
Letter-writers, public, 34.
Libel laws, 144.
Liberty Bell of Mexico, 90.
Libraries, public, 6, 149.
Lind, John, 206.
Literature, leaders in, 127-128.
Lopez, Gregorio, 88.
Los Reyes, gold-mine at, 287, 294;

Christmas celebration at, 290-

294.

Lotteries, 65.

Love-making, method of, 161-165.
Luna Park, Mexico City, 102.
Lunchrooms, railway, 38, 260. 315-

317.

Madero, Francisco, late President,
198-205.

Maguey plant, the, 40-41 ; other
uses for, than drink, 330.

Maguey plantations, 329.

Mahogany, 383.

Maltrata, village of, 37.

Mango, the Mexican, 32.

Mantilla, the, 89.

Manzanillo, railway to, 348.

Market, at Oaxaca, 267-270.

Markets, public, 31.

Mark Twain, quotation from, 230.

Marriage, charges by priests, 152;
ideas about, 161; Indians'
disregard of, 193.

Martinez, Ramos, artist, 128.

"Mashers," Mexico City, 104, 160;
and the Western widows, 338.

Maximilian, Archduke, Emperor of
Mexico, 83-84; relics of, in
National Museum, 93 ; municipal
improvements in Mexico City
under, 100-101; surrender and
execution of, at Queretaro, 376-
377.

Mayan Indians, 186, 391.

Meat, Mexican, 33.

Merida, city of, 389.

Mexican Central Railway, scenic
attractions of, 219-220; be-
tween Mexico City and Guadala-
jara, 340; from Guadalajara
westward to Manzanillo, 347-
348.

Mexican Herald, the, 145.

Mexican Railway, 13-14.

Mexican Southern Railway, 261-262.

Mexican War, the, 81.

Mexico, past history of, 67 ff.; deri-
vation of the name, 72.

Mexico, Valley of, 220.

Mexico City, 44-66, 86 ff.; govern-
ment of, 96-97; consideration
of the name, 177; visit of
Shriners to, 336-337.

Meztizos, 187, 431.

Military college, Mexico City, 102.

Militia, national, 217-218.

Mineral productions, 179.

INDEX

445

Mineral springs, 249-257, 320-322.
See Health resorts.

Mines, inaccessibility of, 272.

Mining, in Guerrero, 233-234;
around Oaxaca, 272-282, 296-
297; in Jalisco, 348-349.

Mining expert, a so-called, 263.

Mining laws, 280-281.

Mining possibilities, 369.

Miracles, 115-119.

Mitla, ruins of, 302-310.

Model city, near Cuernavaca, 222.

Money, Mexican, 7.

Monterey, city of, 417-418; battle
of, 418.

Monterey News, the, 418.

Montezuma I, King, 72.

Moon Pyramid, 107-108.

Morals, laxity in, 161.

Morelos, Jose Maria, insurrection of,
80, 319.

Morelos, Hotel, 317.

Morelos, State of, 224.

Motoring, interest in, 129. See
Automobiles.

Motor roads, 129, 220-221.

Mummies, in catacomb at Guana-
juato, 361-362.

Murillo, the "Assumption" by, 342.

Music, Mexican fondness for and in-
dulgence in, 131-132.

National Library, Mexico City, 149.

National Museum, Mexico City, 91.

National Palace, Mexico City, 89-91.

National Pawn-shop, 94.

Natividad mine, 272.

Negroes in Mexico, 9.

Newspaper readers, public, 28-29.

Newspapers, 143-146.

New Year's at Oaxaca, 299.

Nicknames by Americans, 177.

Nitzahualcoyotl, Indian poet, 127.

Niven, William, archaeologist, 233.

Novelists, 128.

Nueva Laredo, station of, 426.

Oaxaca, President Diaz' birth and
early years at, 198-199, 271;
prison in, 217 ; pronunciation

and location, 250; railway to,
261-262 ; visit at, 262-271 ; min-
ing about, 272-282, 296-297;
prehistoric remains about, 300-
310.

Oaxaca, State of, 283-284.

Oil, production of, 369; for fuel on
railways, 379.

Onyx quarries, Puebla, 240.

Opera-house, Mexico City, 57.

Organs in churches, 115.

Orizaba, Mount, 2, 26, 37, 38.

Orizaba, town of, 12, 19-35.

O'Shaughnessy, Mr., 127.

Our Lady of the Angels, church and
shrine of, Mexico City, 112-113.

Pachuca, silver mining at, 367.

Paganism, survivals of, 150.

Palacio, Vincent Riva, novelist, 128.

Palenque, ruins at, 390.

Pan-American Railway, 389-390.

Pankhurst, Sefior, 180.

Paper pulp from cacti, 330.

Para grass, 405.

Parks, 49.

Paseo de la Reforma, Mexico City,
99-100.

Passion Play at Amecameca, 335-336.

Patio process of silver extraction, 366.

Patzcuaro, Lake, 350, 370-371.

Patzcuaro, town of, 370-371.

Pawn-shop, National, 94.

Paz, Irenio, novelist, 128.

Pearson and Sons, works of, at Rin-
con Antonio, 386.

Pears' Soap anecdote, 196-197.

Peons, 184, 350; dress of, 20-21,
33; wretched living conditions
of, Mexico City, 136-137; good
qualities and faults, 187-188; on
large haciendas, 324-326; 424;
peonage, 197. See Indians.

Periodicals, 145.

Pesa, Juan de Dios, poet, 128.

Petroleum, supply of, 369.

Physicians, American, in Mexico, 23.

Picture-cards, game of, 297-298.

Pictures in churches, 246-247, 342,
372.

446

INDEX

Picture-writings, 70.
Pilgrimages, remarks on, 236.

Pinates, 242-243.

"Playing the bear," 161-165, 327,
363.

Plazas in cities, 25-26.

Pneumonia, in Mexico City, 55.

Poets and poetry, 127-128.

Poindexter, Colonel, 400.

Police, in Vera Cruz, 10; at Orizaba,
34 ; Mexico City, 50-52 ; Republi-
can Guard, Mexico City, 100-
101; enforced baths by, 137;
work of, under Diaz regime, 213-
214; abuses by, 214-216.

Politeness, Spanish style of, in Mexico
City, 132; of Indians, 133-134,
192.

Polygamy, 193.

Popocatepetl, Mount, 102, 220, 224;
shortening of name, by Ameri-
cans, 177; ascent and descrip-
tion of, 328, 331-335; legend
of, 332 ; sulphur mining on, 334.

Popo Park, 331.

Posadas, 243-244.

Post-office, Mexico City, 57.

Pottery, 33-34; from Guadalajara,
346-347; Aguas Calientes ware,
407.

Pottery industry, San Antone, 228-
229.

Prehistoric relics, 390.

Prescott, W. H., quoted, 245, 308.

Press, Mexican, 143-146.

Priests, Mexican, 25; influence of,
150-151.

Prisons, compulsory education in,
149; conditions in, 217.

Procrastination, prevailing habit of,
132-133.

Products of Mexico, 179.

Protestantism, slight hold of, 153.

Puebla, city of, 235-247.

Puebla, State of, 239.

Puerto Mexico, port of, 379, 388.

Pullman cars, 13.

Pulque, national drink, 40-43, 141;
consumption of, by Indians,
193-195.

Pulquerias, 194.
Pyramid at Cholula, 245-246.
Pyramids of the Sun and Moon, 107-
108.

Queretaro, surrender and execution
of Emperor Maximilian at, 84-
85, 376-377; visit to, 375-377.

Quero, Don Felix, 304.

Queroga, Bishop, 373.

Quetzalcoatl, legend of, 69; idol
called, 93; emblem of, 231;
temple of, Cholula, 245-246.

Railway, Mexican, 13-14; Mexican
Central, 219-220, 340, 347-348;
Tehuantepec National, 378 ff.,
388-389; a Pan-American, 389-
390; Kansas City, Mexican and
Orient, 409.

Railway possibilities, 389.

Railway restaurants, 38, 260, 315-
317.

Railways, government policy con-
cerning, 146-147, 204; changes
effected by, 148.

Railway stations, 45, 147.

Railway trains, 12-13, 35.

Railway travel, cost of, 35.

Ranches, in State of Coahuila, 418-
425. See Haciendas.

Ranch life, 418-425.

Real estate investments, 182.

Rebeccas, Indian, 274.

Refresco, Mexican drink, 6.

Religion, state of, 151-154; of the
peons, 189-190.

Religious practices, 150, 155-156.

Religious toleration, 152-153.

Rent, cost of, Mexico City, 136.

Republican Guard, Mexico City,
100-101.

Restaurants, railway, 38, 260, 315-
317; in Mexico City, 63, 138-
143.

Revolutionists, 208.

Rincon Antonio, railway shops at,
386.

Rubber. See India rubber.

Kurales, mounted police, 213.

INDEX

447

Salina Cruz, port of, 379, 387-388.
Saltillo, town of, 415.
Salvation Army, barred from Mex-
ico, 153.

San Antone, 228-229.
San Francisco Street, Mexico City,

62.
San Juan Teotihuacan, town of, 107-

108.

San Juan de Ulloa, island of, 3.
San Luis Potosi, city of, 406.
San Miguel Peras, village of, 287,

289-290.

San Pedro, village of, 346.
Santa Ana, General, 81.
Santa Lucrezia, village of, 383.
Sapodilla, the, 32.
Sarape, the, 21; an Indian word,

129; "made in Germany," 407-

408.
"Schemes," men with, 173-174, 263,

264, 295, 363; a victim of, 416-

417.

Sculptors at San Pedro, 346-347.
Sculpture, Mexico City, 100.
Seasons, dry and rainy, 53.
Servants, 48 ; force of custom among,

134; wages of, 166; numbers of

household, and customs, 166-

167.

Sheep farming in Chihuahua, 410.
Shooting, at Chapala, 353; jaguar,

puma, tapir, deer, etc., 382.
Shops, at Orizaba, 22-23; at Mexico

City, 62.
Shriners in Mexico, 336-337; at

Guadalajara, 344-345.
Sierra, Justo, poet, 128.
Signs, American, in Mexico City, 59.
Silver, the mining of, 364-367, 408;

processes of extraction of, 366;

annual output of, 369.
Silver king, tarpon called, 400.
Silver kings, 225-226, 364-366.
Slavery, 184-185, 188-191, 424.
Slum districts, Mexico City, 136-137.
Smith, F. Hopkinson, quoted, 190,

373-375.

Smoking by women, 165.
Soap-manufacture, 239.

Social leaders, Mexico City, 126-127.

Social life, Mexico City, 124.

Soldiers, Mexico City, 57; on guard
at National Palace, 90; compul-
sory education for, 149 ; training
of, statistics of army, uniform,
etc., 217-218.

Sombrero, Danza de, 293.

Sombreros, 21.

Sonora, Yaqui Indian war in, 411-
414.

Sorrowful Night, the, 107, 113.

Southern Hotel, Tampico, 40fr.

Spaniards in Mexico, 177; clubs of,
Mexico City, 183.

Stage-coaches, 350-351, 370.

Statues, Mexico City, 100.

Steamship lines, 395.

Stephens, J. L., cited, 390.

Stillwell, Arthur E., 409-410.

Stone of Sacrifice, 87, 91.

Storekeeping methods, 298-299.

Strawberries at Iripuato, 355.

Street-car fares, 97.

Street-cars, Vera Cruz, 6; Orizaba,
27; Mexico City, 46, 57, 97;
Cuernavaca, 222; Puebla, 238;
Guadalajara, 344, 346; Guana-
juato, 356.

Street of the Dead, Teotihuacan,
110.

Streets, Mexico City, 58; names of,
64.

Suburban life, growth of, 107.

Suffrage, severely limited, 2 10, 431.

Sugar-cane regions, 322-326, 385.

Sulphur mining on Mt. Popocatepetl,
334.

Sun Pyramid, 107-108.

Sun-worship, 72.

Swamps of hot lands, 383.

Tabasco, State of, 383.
Tacubaya, town of, 107.
Taft, President, 200, 205.
Tamales, 139.
Tampico, 3, 394, 398-403.
Tarpon fishing, 394, 399HL03.
Tehuacan, Mexican Carlsbad 249-
257.

448

INDEX

Tehuantepec, Isthmus of, 378-393;
city of, 390-393.

Tehuantepec National Railway,
378 ff., 388-389.

Telsa, Manuel, statue by, 100.

Temples, at Cholula, 245.

Tequila, fiery Mexican spirit, made
from maguey, 43.

Tezozomoc, Indian poet, 127.

Theatre, at Guanajuato, 358.

Theatres, Mexico City, 50, 131 ; Gua-
dalajara, 343-344.

Thieves' Market, 95.

Titian, painting by, at Tzintzuntzan,
372-375.

Tlacolula, town of, 303-304.

Tlapanecos, gold in land of, 368.

Tlaxcala, town and State of, 247-248.

Tobacco raising, 382.

Tokio, mass meeting expresses sym-
pathy with Mexico, 438.

Toledo, Juan Telles, portrait painter,
128.

Toltecs, race of, 68-69 ; mementos
of the, 107-109.

Toluca, town of, 129.

Topo Chico springs, 418.

Topolobampo, harbor of, 409.

Toro, station of, 220.

Torreon, town of, 425.

Tortilla, native bread, 32.

Tourists, 171-173; at Cuernavaca,
227-228; visit of the Mystic
Shriners, 336-337, 344-345 ; visit
. of Western widows, 337-338.
>4 Tree of "la Noche Triste," 107; big
tree of Tula, 303.

Tres Marias, station of, 220, 221.

Tropical Mexico, 378-393. See Hot
lands.

Tropic of Cancer, 415.

Tula, village of, 302-303.

Tumbago, 61; in cathedral, Mexico
City, 88.

Turkey vendors, 345.

Typhoid, prevalence of, at Mexico
City, 55.

Tzintzuntzan, village of, 371-372;
the Titian at, 372-375.

Uniforms, military, 90, 218.
United States. See Americans.

Valenciana, Conde de, silver king,

365.
Vera Cruz, harbor of, 2 ; importance

commercially, 3; early history

of, 3-4; description of, 5-12,

394-395.

Vera Cruz, State of, 383.
Villa, Pancho, 200, 208.
Volcano, Colima, 348.

Wages, of servants, 166; of peons,
188; of native miners, 369; of
cowboys, 420.

Warner, Charles Dudley, quoted,
375-376.

Water-carriers, 34, 99.

Watering-places, 249-257, 314-322,
407, 415.

Water supply, Mexico City, 99.

Wheat, raising of, 237; in Chihua-
hua, 410.

Wilson, President, 205; refuses Huerta
recognition, 206.

Witches, Indian, 229.

Women, in business, 56, 167-168;
jealous protection of, 123, 157-
159; lack of housekeeping
knowledge, 125, 166; concern of,
in church matters, 151, 165 ; ap-
pearance of, 159, courtship of,
161-162; smoking by, 165-166;
lack of education in, 167; dress
of, 168-169; Indian, 192-193;
the Zapotec, at Tehuantepec,
391-393.

Women's rights, tabooed, 159.

Woods, valuable, 383,

Xochicalco, ruins of, 231.

Yaqui Indians, 185; warfare con-
ducted by, in Sonora, 411-414.

Yellow fever, extinction of, 11, 388.

Y.M.C.A. in Mexico, 153.

Young men, lack of responsibility of,
178-179.

Young Mexican party, 196, 205.

INDEX

449

Yucatan, Mayan Indians in, 186,
391 ; cultivation of henequen in,
329; railway possibilities in, 389.

Zacatecas, silver mining at, 408.
Zambrano, silver king, 364-365.
Zapata, Emiliano, 200, 208.
Zapotec Indians, 271, 309, 311-313,
391-393.

Zaragoza, General, 83, 239.

Zavaleta, scenic and climatic attrac-
tions of, 284-285.

Zavaleta gold mine, 272-282.

Zayas Enriques, Senor de, champion
of Yaquis, 411.

Zocalo, park in Mexico City, 97.

Zopilotes, in Vera Cruz, 11.

Zyaboa, Mitla called, 309.

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Islands.

In Mr. Worcester's valuable new work, past and present conditions are mi-
nutely reviewed with regard for strict accuracy of statement. The author's
position giving him free access to all the government records, much of the in-
formation thus made available has never been before made public. With prac-
tically unlimited material on which to draw in the way of illustrations, very fine
and rare photographs intimately related with the text emphasize the lessons
which they are respectively intended to teach.

The result is a work of the greatest importance as well as of the greatest in-
terest to all concerned as to the future possibilities of the Philippines and as to
the course the United States Government should pursue in the interest of the
several peoples of the Islands.

CONTENTS

Chapter I. — View Point and Subject Matter. Chapter II.— Was Independ-
ence Promised ? Chapter III. — Insurgent " Cooperation." Chapter IV. —
The Premeditated Insurgent Attack. Chapter V. — Insurgent Rule and the
Wilcox-Sargent Report. Chapter VI. — Insurgent Rule in the Cagayan Valley.
Chapter VII. — Insurgent Rule in the Visayas and Elsewhere. Chapter VIII.

— Did We Destroy a Republic? Chapter IX. — The First Philippine Com-
mission. Chapter X. — The Conduct of the War. Chapter XI. — The Second
Philippine Commission. Chapter XII. — The Establishment of Civil Govern-
ment. Chapter XIII. — The Philippine Constabulary and Public Order.
Chapter XIV. — American Governors. Chapter XV. — Health Conditions.
Chapter XVI. — Baguio and the Benguet Road. Chapter XVII. — Coordina-
tion of Scientific Work. Chapter XVIII. — Improved Means of Communica-
tion. Chapter XIX. — Education. Chapter XX. — The Administration of
Justice. Chapter XXI . — Financial Reform . Chapter XXI I. — The Philippine
Forests. Chapter XXIII.— Philippine Lands. Chapter XXIV. — Peace and
Prosperity. Chapter XXV. — Commercial Possibilities of the Philippines.
Chapter XXVI. — The Picturesque Philippines. Chapter XXVII. — Fish and
Game. Chapter XXVIII. — The Exploration of Non-Christian Territory.
Chapter XXIX.— The Government of Non-Christian Tribes. Chapter XXX.

— The Government of Non-Christian Tribes (continued). Chapter XXXI. —
Corrigenda. Chapter XXXII. — Non-Christian Tribe Problems. Chapter
XXXIII. — Slavery in the Philippine Islands. Chapter XXXIV. — The Philip-
pine Assembly. Chapter XXXV. — Is Independence Possible? Chapter
XXXVI. — The Future of the Philippines.

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Carson, W. E. F

1215

AUTHOR

Mexico: The wonderland of the

TITLE

. CSrson, V.- E. ' 1215

.C33

Mexico: The wonderland of the soutl